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The 909 Walnut Fidelity Tower Building, refurbished to provide 34 floors of beautiful, spacious luxury suites for high-rise living, is the tallest apartment building in Missouri. Atop the new eight-story parking garage is a lush garden. The landscape design fills a green void in this densely-packed downtown area.
Photo: Jeffrey L. Bruce & Co.

Green Roofs Needed
Many older cities have combined sanitary and storm sewers, whose treatment capacity can be overwhelmed by heavy rains. By capturing and temporarily storing stormwater, green roofs not only reduce runoff but can limit occurrence of combined sewer overflow (CSO), and thus diminish the quantity of untreated wastewater entering fresh water. By reducing peak flows during rain storms, green roofs help reduce flooding.

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One hundred feet above Chicago?EUR??,,????'?????< Photo: Hoerr Schaudt Landscape Architects, LLC, and Green Roofs for Healthy Cities

With reduced stormwater runoff, smaller roof drains may be possible on a green roof. Stormwater and sewage systems involve high capital investment into the components, continual maintenance and inspection. A 2005 study by the Casey Trees Endowment Fund, ?EUR??,,????'?????<

Studies shown traditional roof runoff contains high concentrations of pollutants from rainwater, roofing materials and atmospheric deposition. The plants and growing media on green roofs help decontaminate runoff, loading fewer pollutants into the stormwater system.

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The Broadway Tech Centre office park in Vancouver, B.C. is built on a hillside, a former brownfield site. Buildings No. 1, 5 and 7 are registered for Gold LEED status with the Canada Green Building Council. A sports field, caf????????(C) patios, entrance plazas and sport courts share the green rooftop spaces. Water features are abundant. Lawn, shrubs and landscape berms support trees on slabs, surrounded by an all-weather synthetic turf field. Large canopy trees shade portions of the hardscape.
Photo: Sharp & Diamond Landscape Architecture Inc., and Green Roofs for Healthy Cities

Some relief of natural areas for wildlife can be sustained through green roofs, although they are not intended to replace true natural areas, but they can complement green corridors and wildlife habitats in urban settings. In highly populated areas, green roofs could represent ?EUR??,,????'?????<

Even in densely populated areas, beneficial insects, birds, bees and butterflies can be attracted to green roofs. Native plant selections usually fare better in these instances, since they have evolved with animals that depend on them for food, shelter and cover.

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The Gary Comer Youth Center, in one of Chicago?EUR??,,????'?????< Photo: John Ronan Architect, and Green Roofs for Healthy Cities

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LEED
While green roofs may not contribute directly to achieving points under LEED, they contribute to earning as many as 15 credits when used with other sustainable building elements. Green roofs can earn direct credits through reduced site disturbance, protecting or restoring open space, landscape design that reduces urban heat islands, stormwater management, water efficient landscaping, innovative wastewater technologies and innovation in design.

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Building 607 at O?EUR??,,????'?????< Photo: Barrett Co., and Green Roofs for Healthy Cities

Professionals Needed
The green roof industry is rapidly expanding and needs trained professionals familiar with green roof benefits, design, implementation and technology. Despite the severe economic downturn, the green roof industry grew by 16.1 per cent in 2009 over 2008.

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In January of 2007, GRHC gathered a group of 16 subject matter experts in Toronto for a two-day workshop, resulting in the development of a set of occupational standards for an accredited Green Roof Professional (GRP). A GRP must pass a written exam on design, installation, waterproofing, drainage, plants and growing media. With the inherently interdisciplinary nature of green roofs, GRP accreditation provides a common language between professions.

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When Sanitation District No. 1 took on responsibility of stormwater management for three Northern Kentucky counties, the district wanted to set a regional example of stormwater best management practices (BMPs), which included a green roof for the administration building expansion. The green roof assembly comprises 3,600 sq. ft. of ?EUR??,,????'?????< Photo: Sanitation District No. 1, Ft. Wright, Kentucky, and Green Roofs for Healthy Cities

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Green Roof Event
GRHC will co-host the 9th annual CitiesAlive! 2011 Green Roof and Wall Conference in Philadelphia, Nov. 30 to Dec. 3. The conference examines how green roofs and walls can contribute to Philadelphia?EUR??,,????'?????<

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Evergreen State College in Olympia, Wash. is committed to sustainable development. The new building, evaluated for Gold status under the USGBC?EUR??,,????'?????<
Photo: The Garland Company, Inc., and Green Roofs for Healthy Cities

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