Green roofs for buildings

11:43am Tuesday 30th September 2008

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The Environment Agency has produced a toolkit to help London's rooftops go green'.

The agency says that as climate change bites, London will experience more extreme weather, with hotter, drier summers and warmer, wetter winters, which could bring increased flooding, overheating, and droughts.

The Environment Agency. which is a Government body which works to protect the environment, has now developed a toolkit to encourage green roof design.

It says green roofs, which can be planted with vegetation ranging from small shrubs to wildflowers, help the environment in a number of ways.

They reduce the risk of flooding by storing rainwater that could run-off and overwhelm drains at the same time as insulating buildings, reducing energy consumption and CO2 emissions.

And it says the roofs could cut the 'urban heat island effect', where temperatures in a built-up area are much higher than their rural surroundings.

Advice in the toolkit includes what types of plants to grow and species to introduce to the area, depending on the type and size of the roof.

Information is also given on how to assess how much water can be absorbed, preventing it from falling to the ground and filling up drains.

Buildings with green roofs can already be found in Canary Wharf and Cannon Street Station.

More are planned for new developments such as new homes in the Greenwich peninsula by London Quadrant housing association and at Battersea Power Station.

The agency's Thames regional director and London sustainable development commissioner Robert Runcie said: "Green roofs will help adapt our cities to climate change.

"London is leading the way and the Living Roofs toolkit will enable developers to produce quality green roofs."

The toolkit is part of the Environment Agency's successful Guide for Developers Pack, which was launched on 17 September at the World Green Roofs Congress, London.

For more information on the toolkit visit environment-agency.gov.uk/greenroofs