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Investments in urban green infrastructure is the solution to extreme weather events, writes Luigi Petito for Living Architecture Monitor. The good thing is that we have solutions to mitigate these extreme phenomena. One of these solutions is investment in urban green infrastructure. In cities we must and can restore the natural water cycle with existing technologies. We must renature densely populated areas with blue-green infrastructure on roofs, allowing water infiltration, rainwater harvesting, evapotranspiration, urban heat island effect mitigation and decentralised stormwater management. straight from the source Rotterdam, The Netherlands, June 3, 2018: close-up of some of the shops and the public park on top of them at Dakpark Rotterdam, The Netherlands, June 3, 2018: close-up of some of the shops and the public park on top of them at Dakpark
Green and blue infrastructure give an essential contribution to urban biodiversity, writes Luigi Petito in the Summer edition of Living Architecture Monitoring. On June 22, the European Commission proposed the first EU Nature Restoration Law in the form of unprecedented legally binding urban biodiversity targets. Such targets are intended to boost a systematic integration of vegetation into urban planning, including in public spaces, infrastructure, and in the design of buildings, in particular of their roofs and facades, and their surroundings.
Municipalities need to act as ‘moderators’ and involve the local community in urban planning, suggests WGIN board member Jure Šumi. This is the way to go to make our cities more sustainable and inclusive In his intervention, Jure stressed the need to bring nature near to every citizen across Europe for their health and wellbeing. To meet this goal, EU cities can rely on the implementation of green roofs and green walls as an easy and affordable solution bringing several other benefits: from biodiversity to stormwater management and climate adaptation.
We have already been talking about the real performance of green roofs, in terms of improved energy efficiency, better storm-water management, lower heat-island effects and more – because it’s all about achieving good environment performance. However, this time we look at the expectations of green roofs from the customer’s perspective. There are certain local aspects and requirements that contribute to the fine-tuning of green roof design. Let’s narrow these aspects down to 4 crucial elements: • climate conditions where the green roof will be set-up • type of building and type of roof where the green roof will be installed • the future purpose of the new green space being installed • local legal requirements We will not go into any theoretical debates here, but rather focus on two borderline case stories, where customer needs particularly determined the type of green roof construction, and where employing a traditional green roof simply doesn’t work. DUBAI, UAE Let’s first start with the climatic conditions that green roofs need to survive under extreme heat and humidity. And when talking about extreme, we’re talking about summer daytime temperatures that can easily exceed 50º C / 120º F. a roof on a four-storey building that connected two residential skyscrapers recreational space where residents could meet and relax There were a few main requirements on the investor’s side: The green roof needs to be lush, so that residents will see it as a real field of flowers and grasses The green roof should not be too heavy, as the area dedicated to installation of the green roof was a roof covering meeting rooms below The green roof can be irrigated, but should not require more irrigation water than what the Dubai code specifies for parks and gardens Initially, this seemed too much of a challenge to overcome. Knauf Insulation had to design a green roof no larger nor greater than 60 kg/m2 (12 lbs/ft), that would not consume more than 8 litres/m2 (0.3”) of water per day in the highest summer months, and would continue to look lush and green. Just look at what they were able to develop using only 6 cm (2.5”) of growing media, which weighed less than 50kg/m2 (10lbs/ft) fully saturated. A roof on a four-storey building that connected two residential skyscrapers recreational space where residents could meet and relax RIGA, LATVIA This other project was entirely different in terms of climate conditions. The project was executed in the Baltics – in Riga, Latvia – where winter temperatures can easily drop well below -20º C / -5º F. Like the Dubai case, the Riga green roof was built in a residential area. The roof between the residential buildings was meant to be a recreational space, where families could relax late in the afternoon and watch kids play in the rooftop-playground. The simplest green roof structure using grass over the entire roof would have been the cheapest alternative; however, this would actually require a lot of maintenance over the years to come, which would be a burden for future residents, so this idea was initially scrapped. The following requirements were drawn up for Knauf Insulation to follow: • The green roof needs to be fully vegetated on the day the first residents arrive • The green roof should remain nice, even in the colder winter months when not covered in snow • The green roof should require a minimum of maintenance, meaning low additional costs for the residents • The original design should make the roof thicker than the pathways made of concrete paving stones • The green roof must act as a storm-water management tool. The difficult part here was to provide sufficient storm-water management with a thin structure that would not exceed the height of the pavers. This cannot be done with regular green roof soil, so a structure that employed Urbanscape Growing Media, just 4 cm thick (1.8”) was used. This 4 cm thick structure could still hold the majority of the annual rainfall (more than 70%) that usually pours down on the roofs of Riga. Once built and ready, the entire place looked fantastic, and complied with all of the initial requirements. We all know that Urban Green Infrastructure is truly the industry of the future and in order to support faster growth, we need to respect the needs and wishes of our potential users. Sometimes this means that the need to look outside the box and beyond traditional ways of doing business.
Green Roofs for Healthy Cities (GRHC) is excited to announce the Grey to Green Conference, to be held virtually on June 22 from 10am – 4:30pm and June 23 from 10am – 6pm est. Cost: $175 USD for one day, or $349 USD for both days. © Green Roofs for Healthy Cities The goal of this virtual green infrastructure conference is to help inform the current policy debate by making the case for a rapid and significant increase in green infrastructure investment in our COVID-19 recovery. Grey to Green will feature a variety of sessions including standard panel discussions and ask an expert sessions. The conference will also have virtual networking so you can catch up with other attendees and share insights on green infrastructure. It will also include a Future Proof Design Jam, where a select number of attendees will reinvent six real urban spaces in Canada through the lens of green infrastructure. Admission to the Future Proof Design Jam is FREE for all 2 Day Conference Registrants, but space is limited. Speakers include: • Peter Kindel, AIA, RIBA, ASLA, on the tenets of Biomorphic Urbanism and illustrates how these design principles can restore natural systems while enhancing the human experience. • Cecil Konijnendijk, Director, Nature Based Solutions Institute, will be presenting on the evidence-based guidelines for greener cities: the case of the 3-30-300 rule. • Henry Gordon-Smith, Founder & CEO of Agritecture, on exploring the Role of Urban Food Production in future-proofing our cities. • Jennifer Bousselot, Ph.D., GRP, Assistant Professor of Horticulture, Colorado State University, will be at the ask an expert session to discuss everything and anything related to agrivoltaics.
The winner of “BuGG Green Roof of the Year” 2021 has been recently announced! The German Association of Building Greening (Bundesverband GebäudeGrün e.V. – BuGG) has been holding the annual election for “BuGG Green Roof, Facade and Interior Greening of the Year” since 2001. BuGG members can submit outstanding objects. The election will then take place during a members’ meeting or an event. At the end of last year, the election was held in digital form and with a large number of participants during the Federal Congress of Building Greening (Bundeskongress Gebäudegrün). The winning project for the “BuGG Green Roof of the Year” 2021 is the designed and accessible green roof of the Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of Matter in Hamburg, submitted by BuGG member Landschaftsarchitektur+. The building has a total roof area of approx. 3,870 m² on various storeys, of which more than half (2,440 m²) is greened. The greening is designed both as an extensive green roof in a multi-layer construction with 4 cm drainage, filter fleece and 11 cm extensive substrate and in the form of a roof garden on the lower terraces and the common area of the canteen. The accessible roof garden also consists of a multi-layered structure: 6 cm plastic drainage, filter fleece, about 5-45 cm sub-substrate (in thicker areas with tree plantings) and 35 cm intensive substrate. The plant selection includes perennials, grasses and woody plants. Ramps and stairs between the levels create connections and a way to cross the campus on the east-west axis. Due to various seating areas along the curved paths, the roof garden can be enjoyed as a retreat and “green place to linger”. The comprehensive lighting concept ensures usability and a delightful atmosphere on the roof even in the dark. The award winner, with its exemplary green roof installation worthy of imitation, also reflects the trend described by the “BuGG Market Report on Building Greening 2021”: the areas of intensive green roofs, and thus the use of roof areas as recreational and living space, are increasing every year. In 2020, for example, 18 percent of the roof areas in Germany were already greened. More information …………………………………………………. Construction information Object: Green roof, Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of Matter, Hamburg Year of construction: 2021 Green roof area: 2,440 m² Building owner: Max Planck Society, Hamburg Architect: Architekturbüro hammeskrause architekten, Stuttgart Planting design: Prof. Mark Krieger, OST Rapperswil Landscape architect: Landschaftsarchitektur+, Hamburg Green roof structure: Extensive green roof in 3-layer construction and intensive green roof in 4-layer construction Green roof system: Optigrün international AG Executing company: Garten- und Landschaftsbau Klaus Hildebrandt GmbH, Hamburg …………………………………………………. Author/Contact Laura Vötig/Dr. Gunter Mann Bundesverband GebäudeGrün e. V. (BuGG) Albrechtstraße 13 10117 Berlin Telefon: +49 30 / 40 05 41 02 E-Mail: info@bugg.de www.gebaeudegruen.info BuGG President Dr. Gunter Mann (centre) presents the managing directors of Landschaftsarchitektur+ Felix Holzapfel-Herziger (left) and Julian Benesch (right) with the winner’s badges for the “BuGG Green Roof of the Year” 2021. Source: Landschaftsarchitektur+ / BuGG The roof garden of the Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of Matter is an inviting place to take a break. Source: Landschaftsarchitektur+ Winner “BuGG Green Roof of the Year” 2021: The Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of Matter in Hamburg. Source: Landschaftsarchitektur+ The winning object is also a ” luminous highlight ” in the twilight of the evening. Source: Landschaftsarchitektur+
The World Green Infrastructure Network continues with its own publications. After its first book “Green Cities in the World” in 2014, the update in 2015 and the Spanish version in 2016, the “Vertical urban agriculture” book followed in 2018. Now you have our new book in your hands, which also updates the overview of national green infrastructure associations around the globe. The present book is a product of several WGIN members and other selected authors. The aim is to highlight some specific examples of implemented projects around the exiting world of green infrastructure. One focus are insight stories about lessons learned in green infrastructure. Why this collection? Green infrastructure has become a hot topic all around the globe; this book can help to expand your knowledge about the associated benefits. Combining construction with plants and incorporating their functionality into the architectural design is today much more accepted than years ago. This publication is an insight view of several pioneer projects and some detailed solutions, which are worth replicating or adapting to other climates, regions or cultures. Read here
Solar panels on a green roof with flowering sedum plants. ID: 1984038584 The European Solar Rooftops Initiative presents a unique opportunity to maximize the impact for cities and citizens promoting the combination of green infrastructure and solar installations on every rooftop and impervious surface where it is economically and technically feasible. The energy crisis, exacerbated by the tragic invasion of Ukraine, has shown how serious Europe’s energy dependence on Russia’s natural gas and oil is. European Governments and the international community are now working on short- and medium-term solutions to increase energy security. These include, among others, plans to diversify energy supplies, the very bad idea to reopen nuclear plants and return to coal, and the excellent idea to boost renewable energy sources. Investing in energy efficiency and renewable energy should have been our governments first political priority for energy security for decades. With the recent release of REPowerEU, a Joint European Action for more affordable, secure and sustainable energy, the European Commission recommends deploying 420 GW of solar capacity by 2030. As part of this effort, the Commission “will present in June a communication on solar energy with the aim of helping unlock solar energy’s potential as a major renewable energy source in the EU. Based on an analysis of the state of play of solar energy across the EU, the solar strategy will propose a European Solar Rooftops Initiative, which will identify barriers, propose measures to accelerate the roll-out and ensure that the public can fully reap the benefits of rooftop solar energy”. The European Solar Rooftops Initiative presents a unique opportunity to maximize the impact for cities and citizens promoting the combination of green infrastructure and solar installations on every rooftop and impervious surface where it is economically and technically feasible. Biosolar installations, which combine green roof and solar energy technologies together, would change our urban environment. Individual homes, building blocks and local energy communities would satisfy their energy needs with solar energy produced on site or nearby. Green roofs and other forms of vegetation would increase urban biodiversity. From an energy perspective, by reducing stormwater runoff and urban heat island effect, green roofs could also significantly decrease the energy required to treat rainwater and cool our cities while also increasing the production efficiency of rooftop solar installations by anywhere from 5 to 15 per cent. Green roofs also provide the ability to ballast racking systems for solar panels without any roofing penetrations. And because green roofs protect the underlying waterproofing, extending its life expectancy beyond 40 years, there is no need to remove solar panels and reroof in the future. Citizens would support biosolar installations. Property value would increase, home and cities would be more beautiful, more energy performant and healthier place to live in. And health and wellbeing in the difficult times of COVID pandemic are a top priority for individuals and communities. Read the full article Living Architecture Monitor (LAM) is a quarterly publication first published in 1998. It features in-depth interviews with leaders in the green building movement, opinions, research, and green roof and wall project profiles.
At EIMA, the international agricultural machinery exhibition in Bologna (Italy), the World Green Infrastructure Network presented proposals for new standards on green areas in rural, commercial and public building renovations and new construction. The association’s proposals revolve around the definition of new parameters for the renovation of commercial, rural and public buildings and for new residential constructions. These parameters should stimulate, through tax and financial incentives, a more rapid reduction in energy costs in the wake of the objectives set by the European Commission. In particular, according to WGIN, green areas should be integrated in new zero-emission buildings and combined with installations of renewable energy systems: a combination that increases energy efficiency by between 5 and 10%. In addition, as regards the renovation of public, commercial and rural buildings, the introduction of a minimum green area standard should become indispensable to improve environmental mitigation measures. “The time has come for Italy, with the support of other EU countries, to seriously promote a real European Green Deal for climate mitigation in urban areas,” said Riccardo Rigolli, agronomist and board member of WGIN. Read more
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