by Lufa Farms
The origins of sustainable green roofing date back to the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and the Viking Age. In America, the oldest and most well-know green roofs were built in the 1930s atop Rockefeller center in New York. The building has five of these roofs. One of the largest green roof setups can be found at the River Rouge Plant, owned by Ford Motor Company, in Michigan. In Germany during the 1960s, green roofs could be found on schools, shopping centers and offices. Still today, Germany is one of the front-runners in this type of roofing.
Despite the history of green roofs, America has only begun to show major interest in the method within the last decade. Big cities such as Portland, New York, and Chicago are leading the way in America. Canada, Switzerland, Greece and Germany are just some of the countries that are installing these roofs.
Sustainable roofing comes in different forms. There are three primary types: cool, renewable-energy generation and vegetative. A cool roof uses solar-reflective material to lower the temperature of a roof. A renewable-energy generation can create power and heat water by using solar technology. A vegetative roof incorporates different species of plants.
There are three types of vegetative roofs: intensive, semi-intensive and extensive. The level of maintenance required and the depth of the plants help determine type. An intensive structure has deep-set plants and often requires irrigation, feed and other forms of maintenance. Because these require so much attention, they are accessible. Sometimes they include small trees and shrubs.
Self-sustaining vegetative roofs are considered extensive. They usually require little or no maintenance and host plants such as moss. Semi-intensive roofs fall in the middle.
There are several benefits associated with sustainable roofs. They are considered energy efficient, pollution filters and noise buffers. In terms of weather, they can help with managing storm water and protecting the roof from extreme weather conditions. It can also regulate the temperature inside the building it is placed on. Most intensive roof gardens double as gathering places for the community. They often serve as parks. Another perk is that they increase an estate value and expand the life of a roof.
One reason these structures are not more common around the world is cost. Though they can help people save money in the long run, their initial cost is more expensive than that of traditional roofs. Maintenance is also a cost to keep in mind.
Some roofs may not be able to hold the weight of a sustainable roof. Keep in mind location and building type when deciding on installing one of these structures. Not all buildings are equipped for these roofs.
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* Discussions about Green Economy often ignore the Social – this short 10 minute video addresses this issue. Check out UNRISD’s Project on the Social Dimensions of Green Economy and Sustainable Development http://www.unrisd.org/greeneconomy
This is the first of six videos in the series “Bringing the Social to Rio+20”.
As the world prepares for Rio+20 – marking 20 years since the landmark 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, UNRISD asks the question “Where is the Social in Green Economy?”.
This video project is part of the UNRISD project “Social Dimensions of Green Economy and Sustainable Development”.
For more info, please see: http://www.unrisd.org/greeneconomy
Footage is based on recordings and interviews from the UNRISD conference “Green Economy and Sustainable Development: Bringing back the Social Dimension” (2011).
Green Economy and Sustainable Development: Bringing Back the Social