Our new green roof garden is in, and it adds another sustainable element to our building.
There are two types of green roofs, intensive and extensive. Intensive roofs, which are thicker and can support a wider variety of plants are heavier and require more maintenance. Extensive roofs are covered in a light layer of vegetation and are less “intensive.”
The green roof system we have is the G3 Extensive Green Grid and is used for green roof projects that require a higher degree of aesthetic character. This system is composed of 18”x 24” trays, 4” deep and each tray holds 6 plants. Our garden has 108 trays that will cover 324 square feet and the vegetation consists of flowering varieties of sedums and chives. The green roof garden is designed by Sirima Rajpreeja and was installed by Tim Ryan Construction.
Green roofs serve a few purposes for a building, such as absorbing rainwater, providing insulation, and helping to lower urban air temperatures and combat the heat island effect.
Other elements on our roof include a solar array, and five pairs of roof and overflow drains at the top of our rainwater collection system. Our roof is visible from the south facing window of the Norm Dicks Government Center.
