Green Roofs: Building for the Future

By Dara Colwell, AlterNet. Posted March 6, 2007.

Green roofs have been around for millennia. But as the planet heats up and green space dwindles, they are gaining in popularity in the U.S. and abroad.

From the U.S. Food and Drug Administration building in Washington DC to Heinz Corporate head quarters in Pittsburg, an increasing number of buildings are swapping shingles for sedums. The movement is called green roofing, but far from an industrial paint job, it evolves around technology that's ecologically-sound -- and proving so useful that cities like Portland, Oregon, Chicago, Boston, Seattle, and the entire state of Maryland are eagerly exploiting the potential of this once forgotten façade.

"This technology offers us an opportunity to significantly improve not only the way our buildings operate, but to utilize wasted spaces -- there are millions of square miles," says Steven Peck, founder and president of Green Roofs for Healthy Cities, an organization established to increase awareness of green roof benefits. GRHC also hopes to advance the market in North America. "The roofing industry is just at the beginning of a process of transformation. Nothing can match the range of social, economic and environmental benefits green roofs provide."