CINCINNATI - Officials want to see more green roofs on building tops in Cincinnati.
The City Council on Wednesday became the first in Ohio with a plan to channel grants and loans to residents and businesses to replace tar and shingles with vegetation.
Supporters of the idea want to see Cincinnati become a leader in green roofs, a European-born movement that has spread to only a few U.S. cities, including Chicago, Milwaukee and Seattle.
They say the greenery not only is pleasing aesthetically but reduces stormwater runoff, filters pollutants and cuts heating and cooling costs.
In Ohio, pastoral roofs grace the tops of the Toledo public library, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency building in Columbus and the Cleveland Environmental Center, home of the Greater Cleveland Green Building Coalition.
"We call it our civic plaza rooftop," Toledo library spokeswoman Rhonda Sewell.
It was installed in 2000.
"We were inspired by what we saw in Chicago during a public library conference," said Charlie Oswanski, who heads the library's facilities and operations. "It's performing very well — very low maintenance, and it does benefit us in cooling and heating costs."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081002/ap_on_re_us/green_roofs;_ylt=AsfFO7y...
great story! green roofs are a small fix with big benefits! thanks for posting
Oh man! next thing you know I'll have to mow my ROOF!
"We're all riding on the Hindenburg, no sense fighting over the window seats"-Richard Jenni