HRT 460: Green Roofs and Walls

Course Code: HRT 460

Credits and Offerings

  • 1 credit
  • Fall semester of every year

Course Description

Green roof and wall design and installation practices including plant species and substrates. Environmental impact, ecosystem services, integration with other environmental practices. Influence of economics, public policy, and industry organizations on the implementation of green roofs on a wide scale. Multidisciplinary nature of planning and implementation of successful green roof and wall projects.

Course objectives

  1. To advance the science and art of green roof and wall design and installation and to increase public knowledge about these green building practices.
  2. Distinguish the various types of green roofs and walls and how to install them.
  3. Develop an understanding of how green roofs help manage stormwater runoff, conserve energy, moderate the urban heat island, sequester carbon, repair fragmented urban ecosystems, improve human health, grow food, and reduce land fill waste over their life cycle.
  4. Become familiar with how barriers to acceptance, economics, cost/benefit analysis, public policy, and industry organizations influence the implementation of green roofs on a wide scale.

Topics

  • History of green roofs
  • Benefits
  • Plants and Growing Substrates
  • Installation Methods
  • Stormwater Management
  • Energy and Heat Flux
  • Impact on Climate and Microclimate
  • Carbon Sequestration/Embodied Energy
  • Green Walls
  • Impact of plant species on green roof benefits
  • Barriers to Acceptance, Economics, Public Policy, Human Health
  • State of the Industry, Organizations, Accreditation
  • The Future

Activities

  • Site visits to local green roof sites

 

 

Instructor

Department Information

Students

Research Focus Areas

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