« Senate narrowly avoids increasing our freedom to carry guns | Main | Farming in a future California with less water »
July 22, 2009
Why aren't green roofs more common?
Ever since I learned about green roofs, those amazing soil and plant colored roofs that reduce water runoff, cut energy bills and increased air quality, I wondered why they weren't more common. The NY Times explains why, cost:
But the high upfront costs of green roofs have put some people off from the installation. In particular, the soil for the plants, which is engineered to be lightweight and absorbent, is extremely expensive. While a cubic foot of normal soil might be $2 or $3, the cost of the engineered soil and its installation is about $120 per square foot, said Elizabeth Kennedy, the landscape architect who designed the postal roof’s landscaping.Postal Service Unveils Large ‘Green’ Roof
If we dig deep I imagine we'll find that the savings in reduced energy usage doesn't justify the installation costs on a net present value basis. If the savings from reducing the urban heat island effect, and waste water control were internalized, it is possible that they would be more economical to install.
I've covered green roofs once before in: What's the goal of this policy
Posted by OneEyedMan at July 22, 2009 3:54 PM
Comments
Post a comment
Thanks for signing in, . Now you can comment. (sign out)
(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)