Green roofs are used to:

Environmental benefits
y

Reduce heating (by adding mass and thermal resistance value). A 2005 study by Brad Bass of the University of Toronto showed that green roofs can also reduce heat loss and energy consumption in winter conditions. Reduce cooling (by evaporative cooling) loads on a building by fifty to ninety percent, especially if it is glassed in so as to act as a terrarium and passive solar heat reservoir a concentration of green roofs in an urban area can even reduce the city's average temperatures during the summer Reduce stormwater run off see water-wise gardening Natural Habitat Creation see urban wilderness Filter pollutants and carbon dioxide out of the air which helps lower disease rates such as asthma see living wall Filter pollutants and heavy metals out of rainwater Help to insulate a building for sound; the soil helps to block lower frequencies and the plants block higher frequencies If installed correctly many living roofs can contribute to LEED points Increase agricultural space

y y y y y y y

Financial benefits
y y

Increase roof life span dramatically Increase real estate value

A green roof is often a key component of an autonomous building. Several studies have been carried out in Germany since the 1970s. Berlin is one of the most important centers of green roof research in Germany. Particularly in the last 10 years, much more research has begun. About ten green roof research centers exist in the US and activities exist in about 40 countries. In a recent study on the impacts of green infrastructure, in particular green roofs in the Greater Manchester area, researchers found that adding green roofs can help keep temperatures down, particularly in urban areas: adding green roofs to all buildings can have a dramatic effect on maximum surface temperatures, keeping temperatures below the 1961-1990 current form case for all time periods and emissions scenarios. Roof greening makes the biggest differencewhere the building proportion is high and the evaporative fraction is low. Thus, the largest difference was made in the town centers.