Could 'green roofing' help to keep buildings cool?

As you'd expect in the Middle East, air conditioning is an essential in new buildings, but so is maintaining costs.

However, a pioneering plan to introduce 'green roofing' to Dubai could help to keep buildings cool whilst reducing consumer's energy costs.

Speaking at an event hosted by the Dubai police, Hussain Lootah, Director General of Dubai Municipality discussed how making 'green buildings' could help to reduce pollution and at the same time, cut costs.

"The biggest energy consumers are known to be air conditioners and [water] heaters. Our aim is to have Dubai residents reduce their use of the two," said Lootah according to Zawaya. "This is why we are encouraging green building".

The plan also aims to keep buildings cool by restricting heat from penetrating specially designed 'green' walls, windows and roofs.

"Our biggest problem is material that absorbs heat. For example, areas near highways have seen a rise in temperature because the roads absorb a lot of heat. That's why we have introduced the green roof. These roofs, made of three materials, would reflect the heat instead of absorbing it," he said.

Of course, cost is always going to be an issue, but according to preliminary studies, the cost of a green roof for an average house would be Dh3,000 (USD $817). They would also help to keep energy costs down, paying for themselves over a number of years.

Currently, an average Dubai home that has air conditioning on for 24 hours produces 10 to 20 gallons of water per day, Lootah said. Because of that, Dubai is the biggest per capita producer of domestic waste in the world, averaging between 2.2 kilos and 2.7 kilos of waste per capita per day. Dubai, he said, also produces 9,000 tons of domestic waste per day.

Whilst the plans for 'green roofs' are only in the preliminary stages, Lootah did say that he hoped that all houses in the emirate would boast them in a few years.

"Many developed countries are doing this, but we could perhaps be the first Middle Eastern nation to introduce the concept," he said

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