Earth Our Only Home, Inc.
EarthThrob
EarthThrob
EarthThrob
| Produced by Earth Our Only Home, Inc. |
Summer 2008
TP
Just shy of a month ago, the annual Green Roof for Healthy Cities Conference took place in
Baltimore, MD. Two years ago it was here in Boston. Much has happened since. In 2007
there was an estimated 30% gain from 2006 in the square footage of green roofs in North
America. Now the figure has jumped to 2,407,525 square feet according to the survey of
Green Roofs for Healthy Cities – a gain of 40% for extensive green roofs. However, the
majority are in the Midwest, although Phildelphia and Washington, DC are now on the US top
ten cities list for green roofs. We need to work on Boston! Green roofs are a good thing to
install any and everywhere, but the most important impact is along our coasts where our
urban centers are cement ovens emitting great amounts of heat into our atmosphere.
It has been seen that conventional roofs can get as hot as 150-200ºF. Almost hot enough to
fry an egg! And we all know that when we are barefoot in the summer we jump from the
hot black asphalt to the cool green grass. This is because vegetation tends to remain
between 77-90ºF. That large mass of hot air rises over our coastal cities and settles down
over our coastal waters. There is a constant exchange between the land and water. The
hotter the air over the land, the warmer the air is over the ocean. This is likely impacting
our fisheries and our coastal currents. Do you know that the slightest rise in our ocean
temperature is a signal for jellyfish to move in? Once jellyfish move in to a fishery they can
overtake the fishery and turn it into a desert since they have virtually no predators.
Roslindale already experienced its first blackout this year and it was not yet summer. Do we
know what is in store for us? If we have more heat waves, we will have more blackouts
where people will be without airconditioning and fans to keep them cool. This puts young
children and elderly at risk. In Chicago in 1995 there was a heatwave that killed 785
people. Two years ago there was a terrible heatwave in France and Spain in which they
estimate 20,000-30,000 people died. Mayor Daley has been making a dramatic effort to
cover Chicago in green roofs to help protect the city from the heat. Europe, particularly
Germany, has been working for more than 50 years to put green roofs on their buildings.
There is an incredible impact green roofs have on the peak demand that we experience in a
heatwave when everyone puts their aircooling systems to the highest notch on the knob.
Green roofs can bring our knobs down! They can also reduce our need to build costly power
plants to supply electricity for a few weeks in the summer to cover our short but critical peak
demand.
Let us install more green roofs to make our cities healthy. We will have more beautiful
places to live and we will stay cool. And we can keep our hands off our A/C knobs….
Baltimore, MD. Two years ago it was here in Boston. Much has happened since. In 2007
there was an estimated 30% gain from 2006 in the square footage of green roofs in North
America. Now the figure has jumped to 2,407,525 square feet according to the survey of
Green Roofs for Healthy Cities – a gain of 40% for extensive green roofs. However, the
majority are in the Midwest, although Phildelphia and Washington, DC are now on the US top
ten cities list for green roofs. We need to work on Boston! Green roofs are a good thing to
install any and everywhere, but the most important impact is along our coasts where our
urban centers are cement ovens emitting great amounts of heat into our atmosphere.
It has been seen that conventional roofs can get as hot as 150-200ºF. Almost hot enough to
fry an egg! And we all know that when we are barefoot in the summer we jump from the
hot black asphalt to the cool green grass. This is because vegetation tends to remain
between 77-90ºF. That large mass of hot air rises over our coastal cities and settles down
over our coastal waters. There is a constant exchange between the land and water. The
hotter the air over the land, the warmer the air is over the ocean. This is likely impacting
our fisheries and our coastal currents. Do you know that the slightest rise in our ocean
temperature is a signal for jellyfish to move in? Once jellyfish move in to a fishery they can
overtake the fishery and turn it into a desert since they have virtually no predators.
Roslindale already experienced its first blackout this year and it was not yet summer. Do we
know what is in store for us? If we have more heat waves, we will have more blackouts
where people will be without airconditioning and fans to keep them cool. This puts young
children and elderly at risk. In Chicago in 1995 there was a heatwave that killed 785
people. Two years ago there was a terrible heatwave in France and Spain in which they
estimate 20,000-30,000 people died. Mayor Daley has been making a dramatic effort to
cover Chicago in green roofs to help protect the city from the heat. Europe, particularly
Germany, has been working for more than 50 years to put green roofs on their buildings.
There is an incredible impact green roofs have on the peak demand that we experience in a
heatwave when everyone puts their aircooling systems to the highest notch on the knob.
Green roofs can bring our knobs down! They can also reduce our need to build costly power
plants to supply electricity for a few weeks in the summer to cover our short but critical peak
demand.
Let us install more green roofs to make our cities healthy. We will have more beautiful
places to live and we will stay cool. And we can keep our hands off our A/C knobs….
| Green Roofs Create Healthy Cities Karen L. Weber, Editor |
For the first time in modern history, the North Pole may be iceless this summer.
Scientists say it's an even bet that sea ice in the region will completely disappear in
the next few months, perhaps as soon as August. Ice at the North Pole quickly and
significantly melted away last year, and that may be causing further melting this
summer. Scientists say the disappearance of long-term and thicker ice formed over
the years has disappeared. Now, most of the ice that's left is seasonal ice, which
melts away much more quickly during warm weather.
"This year there is a lot of young ice. There's always some, but this year there's a
lot," Andy Mahoney, a researcher at the University of Colorado's National Snow and
Ice Data Center, told CTV.ca. Satellite observations indicate the ice remaining at
the poles is melting faster than last year's rate, which was already a record year
for Arctic ice loss. Scientists say whether or not the ice melts completely, this year's
northern melt is yet another example of the impact that global warming is having
on the planet's environment.
"There were some people who were saying last year was a rogue year. If the
same thing happens again a lot more people are going to be persuaded about the
consequences of global warming," Mahoney said.
Scientists say it's an even bet that sea ice in the region will completely disappear in
the next few months, perhaps as soon as August. Ice at the North Pole quickly and
significantly melted away last year, and that may be causing further melting this
summer. Scientists say the disappearance of long-term and thicker ice formed over
the years has disappeared. Now, most of the ice that's left is seasonal ice, which
melts away much more quickly during warm weather.
"This year there is a lot of young ice. There's always some, but this year there's a
lot," Andy Mahoney, a researcher at the University of Colorado's National Snow and
Ice Data Center, told CTV.ca. Satellite observations indicate the ice remaining at
the poles is melting faster than last year's rate, which was already a record year
for Arctic ice loss. Scientists say whether or not the ice melts completely, this year's
northern melt is yet another example of the impact that global warming is having
on the planet's environment.
"There were some people who were saying last year was a rogue year. If the
same thing happens again a lot more people are going to be persuaded about the
consequences of global warming," Mahoney said.
| North Pole ice may completely melt away this summer Updated Fri. Jun. 27 2008 12:59 PM ET -- CTV.ca News Staff |
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