Green Roofing Systems the Need of the Hour in Egypt 4 From 7

The rest is temporarily stored in the planting medium and absorptive mats of the system and then slowly drains out.

This allows the combined sewer/ Storm water systems the time to properly process storm water without over whelming local system capacity.

Reduce CO2 emissions

As per a study conducted by Kristen Getter and her colleagues in the Michigan State University’s Department of Horticulture, green roofs also effectively absorb carbon dioxide through photosynthesis.

In their study, Getter and her colleagues measured carbon levels in plant and soil samples collected from 13 green roofs in Michigan and Maryland over a two-year period.

They found that green roofing an urban area of about one million people would capture more than 55,000 tons of carbon in other words, this is equal to eliminating a year’s worth of carbon dioxide emitted by 10,000 midsized SWs and trucks!

urban Heat Island Effect

The concentration of buildings and urban areas during urbanization leads to the formation of a specific climate characterized by higher nighttime temperatures, restriction of wind which disperses pollutants and increased run-off  ‘urban heat islands’.

Cities can be 2 degrees to B degrees warmer than surrounding environments due to the large areas of dark surfaces, consisting mainly of roads, parking lots and dark-colored

roofs.

The extra heat absorbed through dark surfaces during the day is convicted away by ambient breezes, raising air temperature averages; this phenomenon is referred to as the urban heat island effect.

Green roofs improve air quality and help reduce the urban heat island effect.

According to a study conducted by Leatherier Alexandri and Phil Jones at the Welsh School of Architecture, at the University of Cardiff in the UK, green roofs and walls can lower temperatures by 3.6 to 11.3 degrees Celsius depending on the city.