Heat islands spike energy demands, air pollution levels, and heat-related illnesses such as heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Most erosion comes from stormwater runoff green roofs help moderate that blast of runoff from precipitation events, and therefore help local governments deal with rainwater by detaining, retaining, and absorbing it where it first hits.Ĭhicago officials see another public health benefit in moderating the city’s “heat island” effect (defined as urban and suburban areas having temperatures up to 10☏ higher than nearby rural sites). Doug Siglin, director of federal affairs for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, explains the public policy perspective behind the interest in green roofs: one problem in the Anacostia River, which runs through Washington, DC, and in the bay generally, is too much erosion, with silt increasing water turbidity. DC Greenworks has dedicated itself to installing green roofs throughout the city a high-profile demo model they installed at 1425 K Street NW in 2004 has drawn more than 3,000 visitors and inspired similar projects across the metropolitan area. The District allotted about $500,000 in 2007 to innovative stormwater control grants in addition to the Natural Resources Conservation Service partnership.ĭawn Gifford, program coordinator of the nonprofit DC Greenworks, has seen a shift in green roof installations from mainly commercial buildings to a mix of commercial and residential. Previous grants have subsidized some of the first green roofs in the District, as well as the implementation of many other innovative stormwater control practices such as rain gardens and permeable surfaces. In addition, as part of a cash grants program, DDOE and its sister agencies are in the process of installing green roofs on three new community recreation centers, two public schools, and one housing development. This program is slated to begin in the summer of 2007.
To build local engineering design and green construction capacity and catalyze interest in green roofs, the DDOE is working with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service to offer almost $800,000 in complete design-and-build services for select public and commercial properties. Builders also have a procedural incentive: designs that include a green roof in the stormwater control plan receive expedited processing. Those funds, managed by the nonprofit Chesapeake Bay Foundation, seeded a program of incentive grants that encouraged eight builders to choose green roofs over other traditional devices as their primary stormwater control device (stormwater control plans are required for any new construction or redevelopment of more than 5,000 square feet in the District).
Alexi Boado, low-impact development coordinator for Washington, DC’s District Department of the Environment (DDOE), says the city began seriously examining green roofs for stormwater control five years ago, when the DC Water and Sewer Authority provided $300,000 for green roof development as part of a court-ordered settlement.
0 kommentar(er)
