Adding Quality to the
Green Roof Market By Dusty Gedge, President of the European Federation of Green Roof Associations
Over the last ten years the Green roof market in the UK has grown exponentially. From being a relative fringe activity used on specialist buildings many major new developments are including the technology in their designs. Although this is exciting for green roof advocates, like myself, it is important that we ensure that what is being installed is fit for purpose and has longevity both in terms of appearance and in environmental importance. The development and need for a 'code of practice' has always been something the major players and advocates within the industry have desired. Now the technology is mainstream, it is more important.
The establishment of GRO - the Green Roof Organisation - was established three years ago by sponsored members of
livingroofs.org Ltd, the leading UK based green roof organisation. The sole purpose of the group was to work toward a code of practice. GRO was fortunate in that the Green Roof Centre and
livingroofs.org had been successful in obtaining funding from the European Life fund to do this. Over the last 12 months the group has worked hand in hand with the Green Roof Centre and major green roof suppliers and installers to arrive at draft guidance on ‘Planning, installing and maintaining green roofs.
Internationally the German Guidance on green roofs, generally referred to as the FLL, has been in existence since the mid-1980s and has been updated several times. The last review and publication was in 2008 and is available from the FLL website [
www.fll.de]. This document is the basis of all other codes in both Europe, North America and Asia. The UK code is also based on this exemplar document [that is available in English].
The code focuses on the performance of green roofs in the long term. This is particularly apt, considering spring 2011 has been the driest one on record. Many green roofs, especially lightweight simple extensive green roof systems have suffered, as has much of the landscape at ground level. The code provides and advocates recommended minimum depths and build-ups for green roofs to ensure that in the long term and with the vagaries of a changing climate green roofs last and flourish year on year for building owners and managers. These are of course guidelines but by following what |64| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
will be laid in the code of practice, designers, project managers and installers will be able to assure and ensure clients that any given green roof will be fit for purpose.
It is unfortunate that I personally have been called out to a few green roofs over the last few months to inspect and provide an assessment of the green roof. Many of these clients have suggested that with any ‘new’ technology things are likely to be experimental and therefore there is a potentialy for failure. I would contend firstly that green roofs do not fail because of the technology, but because of ‘bad’ specification and implementation. Secondly the technology is sound and as the UK systems are based on German and Swiss technologies that have been implemented with great success for over thirty years, this not a new technology. It is a thoroughly researched and understood method of providing landscape within the built environment. Where things go wrong is where corners have been cut in pursuit of margins!
Nobody with an interest in a flourishing green roof market, both from a business and an environmental perspective, should and does not advocate specifications and implementations that compromise what should be a mainstream building technology across the UK.
The UK green roof code has now been published and is available at
livingroofs.org and should help the green roofs to continue to grow and be implemented across the country.
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