Green Roofs - Living Architecture Monitor - Winter 2017 - 1

1
0
9
2
1
0
4
8
0
9
6
8
2
Y
1
7
9
T
I
$
9
1
2
V
6
I
6
2
T
6
3
C
0
7
1
1
U
8
9
9
4 THE BUSINESS
D
4
3
O
5
7
0
6
CASE
IS
CLEAR!
R
2
1
P
5
6
3
9
5
2
3
7
7
9
1
9 NOW5IS4THE
3
6
8 TIME16
1
TO
INVEST
0
6
7
4
9
9
5
7
7
0
3
0
6
8
2 IN RESURFACING
0
OUR
CITIES
5
8
6
9
0
6
$
9
4
7
4
3
6
9
1
7
0
0
6
7T 719
3
5
4
3
3
1
6
9
1
9
7
6
9
0
1
0
2
3
9
3
6
3
7
2
6
2
1
4
3
1
6
1
5
4
8
2
9
9
5
2
9
2
3
9
7
3
2
4
9
1
2
0
3
8
6
8
9
3
9
8
5
7
6
5
6
0
6
3
9
2
31 2135 0376
0
8
6
6
3
3
3
9
1
6
2
7
2
5
8
0
6
9
0
7
7
6
9
9
6
0
2
4
3
3
3
3
0
$
7
6
3
7
7
9
3
1
8
1
4
2
6
9
8
1
6
0
9
7
7
7
2
6
8
0
0
4
7
0
$
9
3
6
2
6
9
9
6
0
4
0
3
9
0
7
6
4
5
8
0
9
3
1
6
6
9
8
$
4
7
7
5
9
2
0
2
$
FROM THE FOUNDER

he news this year has largely been
dominated by extreme weather
events, from multiple record breaking
hurricanes which tore apart island
communities leaving people homeless
and without food or water, to enormous
forest fires in the pacific north west which
destroyed homes and lives. The bad news
is that many scientists fear that 'mother
nature' is just getting started: that this
is but a taste of things to come! As we
approach critical tipping points in global
temperatures, we run the very real risk of
unleashing vast amounts of greenhouse
gases trapped in the permafrost, called the
methane bubble. In one global expulsion
of methane, more greenhouses gases may
be released than all of industrialization
combined. Temperature increases are also
undermining the health of ecosystems
like the boreal forest, which sequester
enormous amounts of green house gases.
In our oceans, coral reefs cannot survive
increasing water temperatures and are
dying. Reefs provide homes for 25% of
all marine species, support the livelihood
of half a billion people and protect
shorelines.
There is good news this year as well.
The renewable energy sector, particularly
wind and solar is growing very rapidly,
and the business case for renewables is
solid, with dropping costs. There is a
rapid move towards the electrification
of vehicles, with China's policies fueling
global demand.
A growing awareness of, and
investment in, our capacity to adapt to
LIVINGARCHITECTUREMONITOR.COM

climate change impact also holds promise
for the future. The historic Denver vote
in favor of mandatory green roof or
solar installations on new and existing
roofs over 25, 000 sf of floor space is a
testament to citizen activism, and the
strong business case for resurfacing our
cities. This month's "On the Roof With"
interview is with Brandon Reitheimer,
the citizen in Denver who is leading the
charge to resurface his community, which
has the third worst urban heat island in
the U.S. At Green Roofs for Healthy
Cities, we have strongly supported this
effort including developing a cost-benefit
scenario for the green roof component of
the I-300 ballot initiative, which makes
the business case for implementation (See
page 8). We found a net present value of
$1.85 billion over 40 years resulting from
the installation and maintenance of 57.5
million square feet of green roofs.
Our analysis is supported further
by a major study lead by Greg Kats,
President, Capital E on the costs and
benefits of investing billions of dollars
of resurfacing three cities: Washington
DC, Philadelphia and El Paso. Kats
and his team looked at widespread solar
PV, green roof, reflective pavement and
roofs and urban tree implementation.
The business case is clear. They found
Net Present Values ranging from $537
million in El Paso to more than $3.5
billion in Philadelphia over a forty year
period (page 27). The economics of
preparing for climate change impacts in
our cities by investing in these proven

approaches is compelling.
The recent introduction of a new
financing program by Counterpointe
Sustainable Real Estate, through PACE
(Property Assessed Clean Energy)
financing, may be a real game changer.
In his article on page 11, Counterpointe
CEO Eric J. Alini, states that like the
rapid growth in the roof top solar
industry "PACE financing may have
the same transformative effect on green
roofs."
The speed at which we adapt to
climate change and reduce greenhouse gas
emissions, is very much key to the quality
of our common future. Green roofs and
walls have an increasingly important role
to play in maintaining the resiliency and
livability of our cities.
This year very important steps have been
taken that promise to greatly accelerate
adoption. Thank you for your contribution
to our industry and for demonstrating
that we are a critical element in the future
resurfacing of our cities.
Sincerely yours,

Steven W. Peck,
GRP, Honorary ASLA
Founder and President

LIVING ARCHITECTURE MONITOR / WINTER 2017 / 1
http://www.LIVINGARCHITECTUREMONITOR.COM
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Green Roofs - Living Architecture Monitor - Winter 2017
