Green Roof Oasis vs. Concrete Jungle: The Effect of Heat and Cold on the Interior of the Structures and the Surrounding Climate Jonathan Longcroft Collingwood School Floor Location : J 153 V

With global warming as the planet's greatest concern and our population centralizing itself in crowded urban communities, I wanted to test whether the heat generated by the Urban Heat Islands could be minimized by vegetation. Specifically, I tested if Green Roofs would affect the surrounding atmospheric temperature and the temperature of the interior of the structures. I made two models: One model representing a Green Roof structure with a vegetation rich environment; the other model, representing a typical urban concrete building with no vegetation at all. I enclosed each of the models in a separate glass enclosure to simulate and create an artificial atmosphere. I added temperature variables (heat and cold) at separate times and recorded the temperatures inside of the structures and outside the structures but within the glass enclosures (representative of the surrounding
climate of the areas).

I found that a Green Roof building (the vegetation rich environment) helps reduce the surrounding temperatures and helps maintain the stability of internal temperatures of structures. I found this particularly true when the two models were subjected to heat. Specifically, when heat was applied to the two models, the surrounding atmosphere of the Green Roof model was much cooler than the Concrete model and the internal temperature of the Green Roof model was also cooler than the internal temperature of the Concrete model.

When cold was added to the structures, the Green Roof model's internal temperature dropped much slower than the Concrete model?s internal temperature. This may have been because of the extra insulation needed to support the green roof. The outside atmospheric temperature of the Green Roof model dropped more quickly than that surrounding the Concrete model. This may have been due to the higher humidity of the Green Roof model's atmosphere.

In summary, I found that the Green Roof model proved to be more effective in heat retention and heat absorption. This is because plants sweat (evapotranspiration). They draw in heat energy to evaporate water. This results in less heat in the surrounding climate, but also a greater humidity which results in a cooler atmosphere. Those people that live in warm climates, should definitely pursue Green Roof technology, and those people who live in cooler climates may also benefit from Green Roof technology, but not quite as much. Please, go plant a tree!!