| June
2004
| |
Green roof growing
material
|
Madison
Environmental Group led a group
of friends and colleagues on a tour of three Green Roofs
in Chicago. We visited:
-
Peggy
Notebaert Nature Museum
-
Chicago
City Hall
-
Chicago
Center for Green Technology
We saw how Green Roofs in Chicago are helping to
-
Save
energy by reducing heating and cooling
-
Reducing stormwater runoff
-
Improving water quality
-
Reduce the Urban Heat Island effect
| |
Honeybee hives on Chicago
City Hall green roof
|
The
Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum retrofitted their roof
with a green roof in 2003. They have a lightweight, “extensive”
green roof planted with 10 species of sedums. They also
have a demonstration garden including a portion of “intensive”
green roof.
The Nature Museum collects rainwater and uses it for irrigation
for their “living wall.” They also monitor water
flow, wind speed, and energy consumption in the building.
The
Chicago City Hall has a beautiful,
combination “extensive” and “intensive”
green roof, completed in 2001. It is not accessible to the
public but we were able to arrange a special tour. The plants
are mostly low-maintenance perennials, and honeybees on
the roof produce more than 150 pounds of honey every year!
Mayor Richard Daley decided to establish the Green Roof
after visiting Hamburg, Germany and seeing many green roofs
there. There are now more than 80 green roofs established
or underway in Chicago, on public and private buildings.
The
Chicago Center for Green Technology is a demonstration
and resource center for all aspects of green building. The
building itself achieved a LEED-Platinum rating in 2003.
Chicago Green Tech’s roof is a combination of green
roof, white reflective roof, and solar panels. The green
roof is planted in a growing medium made of shale, clay,
and recycled sludge waste. The plants are sedums, wild onion,
and other “volunteers.” Rainwater is collected
from the roof in giant cisterns and used for irrigation.
| |
Chicago City Hall green
roof
|
The Center for Green Technology has six Green Roof test
plots demonstrating different green systems and comparing
them to a black roof, a white reflective roof, and a gravel
roof. The test plots measure temperature and water absorption
for each type of roof.
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