Green Roofs are Cool: How Green Roofs Help the Environment

Most buildings are designed to shed rain, and as such are built with hard, impenetrable roofing surfaces. As a result, rainwater bounces off and collects as runoff, picking up impurities—including infectious bacteria from animal waste as well as harmful pesticides and fertilizers—on the way to municipal storm sewers, which in turn eventually empty into local bodies of water.

Green Roofs Save Energy and Conserve Water
Minimizing this runoff means that more impurities will remain in local soils where they can be broken down more easily into their constituent elements than if they are concentrated downstream. To achieve this goal, landscape architects have developed so-called “green roofs,” which use living plant matter and soil on top of a building to absorb, collect and reuse rainwater while preventing runoff. Many buildings employing green roofs are able to find abundant uses for the water they collect, from watering exterior plants at ground level to flushing toilets inside.

Green Roofs Transform Wasted Space into Thriving Natural Environments
According to Steven Peck of the Toronto-based non-profit Green Roofs for Healthy Cities, green roofs can play an important role in maintaining ecological integrity within otherwise paved over areas. “The roofscapes of our cities are the last urban frontier—from 15 percent to 35 percent of the total land area—and the green roof industry can turn these wasted spaces into a force for cleaner air, cleaner water, energy savings, cooling, beauty and recreation,” he says.

EPA Recommends Green Roofs to Reduce Heat Island Effect
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) encourages the creation of green roofs for mitigating the urban “heat island effect,” whereby temperatures in crowded cities can soar some 10 degrees Fahrenheit higher than in less developed areas nearby. Other benefits, says the EPA, include: providing amenity space for tenants (in effect replacing a yard or patio); reducing building heating and cooling costs due to the buffering effect of the plant matter and soil; filtering pollutants like carbon dioxide out of the air and heavy metals out of rainwater; and increasing bird habitat in otherwise built-up areas.

Roofs Don’t Have to Be Alive to Be Green
Beyond going all out to build a “living” green roof, certain inorganic materials can also make an existing roof greener. The non-profit Cool Roof Rating Council (CRRC), for instance, suggests roofing surfaces that reflect the sun’s heat to reduce the urban heat island effect while improving residential energy efficiency. According to the group, “a cool roof reflects and emits the sun’s heat back to the sky.” Builders can check out CRRC’s website for a database of information on the radiative properties of various roofing surfaces so as to make the smartest choice for clients and the environment.

Durable Roofs Greener Than Those Needing More Frequent Replacement
Another quality that makes certain roofs greener than others is how long they last. Metal roofs are known to be relatively maintenance free and last longer than shingles in most situations. Slate roofs also have an excellent reputation for lasting long, although getting work done on them can be expensive when they do need repairs. The Slate Roofing Contractors Association reports that sea green slates can last anywhere from one to two centuries, depending on where the slate is quarried and how well it is installed.

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EarthTalk is a regular feature of E/The Environmental Magazine. Selected EarthTalk columns are reprinted on About Environmental Issues by permission of the editors of E.

REFLECTION

I think this could be one giant step towards a whole new era of "green" lifestyles. No more recycled notebooks, and overpriced "organic" cotton t shirts. Just roofs that help conserve our resources; a.k.a an actual GREEN movement