"Going Green: Union Banking on Roof Garden to Save Energy and Cut Costs"
"Dallas Researchers to Explore Potential 'Green Roof' Technology"
"Development Runoff Fees Debated"
"Bank of America Initiative to Promote 'Green' Practices"
"Fattah Announces His Plan for Trees and Energy Savings"
"A Greener Skyline"
"Forget Hot Tin Roof, These Will be 'Green'"
"Kwan Henmi Designs San Francisco's First Condo Building on Track for LEED Certification"
"The Home Depot Foundation Awards $300,000 Grant"
"Gurus Seek a Building Rating System with Even Greener Pastures"
"Office Project Is So Green It's 'Platinum'"
"Comptroller Calls for Energy Efficient Buildings"
"Cool Roofing: A 10-Year Retrospective"
"Shelter From the Storm"
"Buildings That Breathe"

Union Bankshares Corp. is developing an operations center in Bowling Green, Va. The new facility will boast a number of environmentally friendly features, ranging from a rooftop garden to waterless urinals. Although these and other features are adding to the new building's construction cost, they are expected to help the company realize substantial savings in the long run on everything from water to energy. Union Bankshares President and Chief Executive Officer G. William Beale remarks, "It's the right thing to do. It's what more companies ought to be doing." Beale is perhaps most excited by the new structure's green roof, which will help ease stormwater runoff and the heat island effect. He expects the roof garden to pay for itself within a decade via energy savings.
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In Texas, Wayne Mackay has teamed up with two other Dallas-based researchers—Raul Cabrera and John Sloan—to determine whether a spongy material designed to contain jet fuel can be used as bedding for future rooftop gardens. The three scientists currently are working on a research grant proposal to evaluate the material that looks and feels like foam rubber. Joe Byles, an aerospace engineer for the defense industry, invented the special foam that is now used for fuel tanks in the wings of military aircraft. After meeting Byles in May 2006, Mackay first began to explore the material's potential for green roofs. Rooftop gardens have been proven to help the environment by cooling metro areas during summer months, insulating commercial and residential buildings, and consuming carbon monoxide. Mackay believes Byles' foam would not require structurally reinforced roofs to handle soil's weight. In addition, he contends it could be easier to install.
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In an effort to curtail pollution in Maryland's Chesapeake Bay, state lawmakers are considering legislation that would force developers to pay runoff fees. The cost would total 25 cents per square foot in designated "smart growth" areas; those who build in rural locales would pay $2 per square foot. But including such features as porous driveways, green roofs and water filtration systems to reduce runoff could shave 25 percent off the cost. The bill has not yet moved out of the Environmental Matters Committee.
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Charlotte, N.C.-based Bank of America (BofA) Corp. has announced a $20 billion "green" program under which it will promote eco-conscious business practices. As part of the 10-year endeavor, BofA will offer mortgage incentives to buyers of homes that satisfy environmentally friendly standards. The bank also indicated it would earmark $1.5 billion for green construction of its own office and banking buildings and for conservation efforts at its existing real estate. The bulk of the investment—$18 billion—will be spent on helping commercial borrowers to finance the production and use of new green tools, services and technologies.
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U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah (D-Pa.) has vowed to support the adoption of green roofs if he becomes the next mayor of Philadelphia and is re-elected in 2011. Under Fattah's plan, the city will invest $36 million to plant 100,000 trees during an eight-year period. He intends to ask residents and business owners to take care of the trees. Fattah is committed to offering grants for commercial building owners to install green roofs. The lawmaker plans to use Chicago as a model, noting the Windy City has created roughly 2 million square feet of green roofs during the past couple of years.
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The Los Angeles City Council's Planning and Land Use Committee recently moved closer to mandating that all new construction in the city feature rooftop green spaces. A motion initiated by City Councilman Ed Reyes formed a task force, which will report to the committee next month for approval, to implement a program fashioned after a Tokyo rooftop garden ordinance. "The green roofs are designed with environmental benefits to essentially turn our gray space into green space," Reyes noted. The energy-saving measure is regarded as a way that city governments can take small steps toward combating global warming. The motion cited similar programs that have been successful in such cities as Atlanta, Chicago, Seattle and Toronto.
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About half of the 12,400-square-foot roof of the new Juvenile and Domestic Relations Courthouse in Lynchburg, Va. will be a "green roof." Most of the plants used to cover the roof will be sedum, a low-maintenance, low-growing plant that typically is used in such installations. The green roof will have several functions, including absorbing rainwater, filtering out pollutants and letting the water evaporate rather than run into Lynchburg's storm drains. In addition, the roof will insulate the building, keeping in air to conserve energy. Although green roofs such as the one being installed on the Lynchburg courthouse have their benefits, they are about 25 percent more expensive than a typical roof. However, City Manager Kimball Payne contends the money Lynchburg will not have to spend managing water runoff from the courthouse, as well as the energy savings provided by the green roof, will more than make up for the extra cost.
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Kwan Henmi Architecture/Planning has designed Arterra, which could be the first high-rise condominium building in San Francisco to receive certification from the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. Under the current plan, the complex will be divided into three buildings of different heights, ranging from six to 16 stories. All three structures will have green roofs. The buildings' sides, meanwhile, will consist of a breathable rain-screen skin and color panels made from recycled materials. A spring 2008 completion has been targeted. Faraaz Mirza, the design director at Kwan Henmi, notes, "This is our first project going after the LEED certification. But for years now, we've been trying to not impose but encourage clients to look into certain environmentally friendly strategies. Arterra is the fruit of this."
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The Home Depot Foundation has provided a $300,000 grant to Green Roofs for Healthy Cities (GRHC) and Earth Pledge. The grant will be used to fund joint efforts to promote green roofs in Atlanta, Los Angeles and Minneapolis. Green roofs provide environmental and economic advantages compared with traditional roofs, according to Earth Pledge Executive Director Leslie Hoffman. GRHC and Earth Pledge will use the grant to create a foundation in the three cities to facilitate partnerships that will focus on choosing the best avenues for garnering support for favorable public polices. Additionally, funding will go towards research projects focused on measuring the benefits of installing green roofs. The Home Depot Foundation was launched in 2002 to provide funding for nonprofit organizations devoted to constructing low-cost, energy-efficient homes. Earth Pledge provides technical research and consulting services for the incorporation of new green technologies in cities nationwide. For its part, GRHC collaborates with government officials to encourage the development of policies that are beneficial to the green roof industry.
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Although the U.S. Green Building Council's popular Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) green-building rating system has helped make green construction more mainstream, architects say the system needs to be improved. In addition to long certification wait times, designers and engineers note that many projects are not awarded for performance-related improvements but merely improvements that have the intention of being environmentally friendly. Building professionals assert the LEED system needs new ratings criteria for various design elements to bring it up to date, including credits offered for those structures near public transportation, as well as increased penalties for construction projects that add to urban sprawl. Moreover, the system needs to be more flexible because sustainability characteristics are more necessary in certain areas than in others, most notably water conservation techniques. Meanwhile, property owners and employers continue to enjoy the benefits of LEED certification in the form of insurance rate discounts, public utility commission rebates, increased worker productivity and lower rates of absenteeism. These LEED buildings also cost less to run because they are more energy-efficient, and when coupled with desirability, such locations can charge higher rents and increase their value on the market.
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Overture Development Group LLC has announced plans to erect a 130,000-square-foot office building that would be rated by the U.S. Green Building Council as a "Platinum" property. Dubbed the Conservatory, the new building is being built in Osceola County, Fla., close to the Walt Disney World resort. Construction is expected to start by the end of this year's first quarter with a 2008 completion targeted. The aim of the six-story Conservatory will be to use 35 percent less energy than a similar, conventional office building. Among its features will be a green roof that will capture rainwater in cisterns for subsequent use in toilets and the building's irrigation system.
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Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot is supporting legislative proposals calling for new buildings in the state to be more energy-efficient. Supporters of green buildings insist they not only benefit the environment, they also lower energy bills for building landlords. Franchot believes the savings will more than counter the higher construction fees for the designs. Five green-building bills overseeing state projects and private development were discussed on Feb. 14 in a Maryland Senate committee. Although new Gov. Martin O'Malley was supportive of Franchot's petition, his administration wants decisions on the bills delayed to permit additional study.
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Cool roofing is a concept that emerged during the mid-1990s and centers on the belief that reflective roofing materials can lower interior temperatures in urban areas and help building owners lower their energy bills. Much research has been gathered on the performance of cool roof membranes during the last decade, determining that any benefits gained from cool roofing depend on the type of building, geographic location and regional climate. A recent study from the U.S. Department of Energy reveals that design should be based on heating load, not cooling load. Research also reveals that warehouses and other low-performance buildings that lack mechanical cooling systems and thermal insulation are the best candidates for cool roof systems. Additionally, building owners must keep in mind that cool roof membranes are not guaranteed to stay white over time and that upwards of half their reflectivity is lost within three years of construction. The Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Oak Ridge, Tenn., reports that roofs made of ballast gravel and/or concrete pavers are a good alternative to cool roof systems as they are self-cleaning and offer similar energy savings. Other alternatives include roof coatings, solar and wind power, and roof gardens. Finally, when determining whether to install a cool roof system, experts recommend building owners consider such things as the roof's life expectancy, foot traffic and integration with heating, ventilating and air-conditioning systems.
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Roofing professionals advise that rethinking installation and maintenance practices can help protect a commercial building's roof against increasingly harsh weather. To this end, building owners and managers should take into account a number of factors when renovating, replacing or formulating a maintenance plan for roofs. Karin Scholz-Barth Consulting, a Washington, D.C.-based company that specializes in green roofs and stormwater permitting, points to increased wind loads and more frequently occurring hail storms and heavier rainfalls as the main reasons to place more emphasis on roof operations. Sunlight's effects on a roof can be harmful, as well, with heat and ultraviolet rays decaying roofing materials over time. Fortifying a building from extreme conditions is important not only for the structure and its tenants but also because climate and weather changes are resulting in modifications to the legal requirements for rooftops from load-bearing capacity to energy-efficiency concerns. Indianapolis-based Firestone Building Products' director of marketing, John Geary, notes, "We have introduced products and systems that use 90-mil EPDM rubber and 80-mil reinforced thermoplastic polyolefin [TPO] membranes as part of assemblies that can withstand wind speeds up to 100 miles per hour. In addition, new metal edge details reflect the importance of properly anchored roof systems at the perimeter of buildings to meet increasingly stringent codes." Finally, roofs must be inspected regularly to maintain proper maintenance.
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Green building is gaining popularity nationwide, fueled by rising energy prices, health concerns and the desire to save the environment. Rocky Mountain Institute Senior Fellow Bill Browning says measures that require buildings to comply with standards set forth by the Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program have been instituted by 54 cities and 23 federal agencies. Green building features are more common in commercial structures than homes mainly because eco-friendly components boost home prices. However, some experts cite a national program with plans to erect green affordable homes in about 20 states during the next five years as proof that mainstream builders can successfully adopt green construction techniques. According to Stockton Williams of Maryland-based Enterprise Community Partners, "If the places that the people with the least amount of resources call home can be sustainable and can do their part to fight global warming, then how can the buildings and builders of market-rate homes and high-rate homes not do at least as well?" A growing number of mansions are incorporating green features, including rooftop photovoltaic cells that generate electricity during the day, irrigation systems that recycle water from the kitchen and bathroom, and living roofs. However, some observers believe eco-friendly homes should be smaller as spacious dwellings consume more building materials and use more energy.
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