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Green Roofs Save Energy While Serving Up Sustainability on Many Fronts

Ten years after it was installed, the largest living roof in the US – about the size of eight football fields – is thriving on top of Ford’s Dearborn Truck Plant. Various plants, insects and animals are living in the ecosystem that is roughly a 10.4-acre garden. It’s planted throughout with low-growing, drought resistant sedum, which requires little maintenance; it is fertilized and weeded once a year and it never needs mowing.
The living roof also serves as a cost-effective alternative, saving five percent on heating and cooling costs at the building, which is significant since it is such a large building. Also, it is expected to last twice as long as a conventional roof, which provides more savings. To watch a short video about the roof go to:

https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/features/ford-s-living-roof–ten-years-in–rouge-center-experiment-helps-.html

To learn about the benefits green roofs provide go to: http://www.epa.gov/heatisland/mitigation/greenroofs.htm: