WorldChanging: Another World Is Here: The Week in Green Design (11/12/05): Green Roofs: "Green RoofsOne of the things I love about riding Amtrak, is the changing of perspective while traveling. When you ride the train, you see a different landscape than if you travel by car or airplane. The landscape is often the backside of America. You see peoples backyards in the suburbs. In the countryside, you see a roadless expanse. And (the point of the post) in the cities you see the allies and cinder block storage buildings, not the fancy facades of front street. It really is a secret passage.
An even better alternative to cool roofs (albeit one that requires more time and effort) is to turn waste roofs into landscaped Green Roofs. Green roofs having the same cooling effect of white roofs, with the added benefits of:
# Providing amenity space for building users �replacing a yard or patio
# Increasing roof life span
# Reducing storm water run off
# Providing noise insulation
# Filtering pollutants and CO2 out of the air
# Providing locally grown food (with roof-top vegetable gardens)
# Increasing wildlife habitat in built up areas
# Reducing heating (by adding mass and thermal resistance value) and cooling (by evaporative cooling) loads on a building
# Reducing the urban heat island effect"
So, this past weekend, when I travelled from Fayetteville, NC (home of Fort Bragg, and former capital on North Carolina), through Washington, DC (our nations capital and home to quite a few sites within walking distance of Union Station), to my final destination, lovely Cleveland, Ohio and my sister's house, I saw quite a bit of out of the usual roadtrip. One thing was light colored gravel spread out on flat roof commercial buildings. I figure it's a slow progression to the greenroof.
I also saw Eastern Virginia in High Fall, the Washington Mall, the new Native American Museum, Pittsburg, and many other highlights! Wait for pictures!
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