What is an Eco-Roof?
An
eco-roof consists of a water proofing membrane, a growing medium, like soil,
and vegetation overlying a traditional roof.
There are two types of
eco-roofs, extensive and intensive. Extensive roofs are relatively inexpensive
to install and are mainly used for environmental benefits. Extensive roofs have
a thin layer of soil and plants that can survive in harsh weather conditions
such as succulents. Intensive roofs allow for a greater variety and size of
plants, and are usually more expensive to install and maintain.
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| An eco-roof here in downtown Portland |
Benefits from eco-roofs
include: improved water quality due to reduced storm water runoff, increased
habitat promoting biodiversity, improved air quality, urban heat island
reduction, and reduced energy consumption.
Storm water runoff:
excess storm water runoff can cause a number of problems, like damaging water
quality by sweeping debris into local bodies of water. In older cities storm
drains are typically combines with sanitary sewers, large volumes of storm
water can cause combined sewer overflow and lead to untreated sewage being
discharged into rivers and lakes. Eco- roofs can reduce the frequency of
combined sewer overflows and can reduce roof runoff by up to 65%.
Air quality: The vegetation
on these eco-roofs can remove air pollutants like carbon dioxide and carbon
monoxide. The eco-roof’s effectiveness at removing pollutants depends on the
types of plants gown.
Urban heat islands: Urban
heat islands are highly built up areas that are usually warmer than surrounding
suburban areas due to the absorption of solar radiation by building and non
plant surfaces, such as side walks and roads. Eco- roofs absorb less sunlight
than traditional roofs, and cool the air around them.
Reduced Energy Consumption:Eco-roofs can help
reduce energy consumption through the process of evapotranpiration. Evapotranpiration is the process by which water is transferred from the land
to the atmosphere by evaporation from the soil and other surfaces and by
transpiration, the process where plants absorb water through the roots and then
give off water vapor through the pores in their leaves.
Resources:
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