Green Roofing in Russia: Challenges and Perspectives
Principles of sustainable construction, which were formed in the 20s last century in Western countries, include a broad list of requirements to buildings in large cities, where environment needs serious improvements to the best. Green standards, such as LEED, BREEAM and etc., present now an important factor in shaping public attitude to emerging challenges and enhancing the living comfort in metropolitan areas. In the range of phenomena, which form the idea of sustainable building there is a separate component which is green exploited roofing.
In Europe, the USA, China and other countries of South East Asia green roofing is one of the main solutions to improve the ecological situation. Taking into consideration a high cost of land and real estate in megalopolises exploited roofing has become a good way to turn roofs into green zones where it people can work and relax. Besides, especially this ecological problem has become a ground for increase of popularity of green roofing as, for example, in Norway, where they take about 90% of overall number of roofing of private cottages, blocks of flats and also public buildings.
Green roofing increases economical effect from the usage of a building at the expense of acquire of additional exploited square and improvement of the aesthetic view, ecological attraction and increase of the rating of a real estate object at certification on green standards. At the same time the living level of citizens increases so far as they have more opportunities to relax, walk, do sport and use children playgrounds. The idea to provide necessary facilities of green roofing is aimed, first of all, at optimization of the impact of city ecology on a person and his or her health that is reached by the scope of its characteristics.
ADVANTAGES OF THE TECHNOLOGY
Modern building and provision of the necessary facilities of green roofing is characterized by global and objective advantages. They are: energy effectiveness and cost saving in the process of maintenance of a building, which are reached at the expense of reduction of heat loss through roofing; improvement of living conditions and work of people; increase of the aesthetic level of a building. Besides, an eco-roof protects waterproofing material of roofing, which is main in the roofing “pie”, from overheating and ultraviolet radiation that lets increase its operating life in several times.
Not the least of the details is that only glued waterproofing membrane is suitable for covering of inclined roofing and roofing of a complex configuration. Nowadays, manufacturers offer a wide choice of membranes which are resistant to the impact of chemical agents and provide a high quality of the green roofing “pie”.
As for our country, where green standards only start being used in building and certification of real estate objects, green exploited roofing becomes an economic instrument to follow advanced world trends and to increase attraction, and, consequently, the price of buildings, and to reach their high social valuation on the international level.
In Russia green roofing only starts its procession along the biggest cities, such as: Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Ekaterinburg, Kaliningrad, Tver, Voronezh and etc. One of the brightest examples is a green roof of Crowne Plaza business centre in the complex of buildings of Pulkovo airport in the northern capital. Roofing with extensive green open space which is more than 2000 sq m was made in the project realized in 2011.
Green roofs start to be applied in building of objects of the international level for the Olympic games in Sochi in 2014 and World Football Championship in 2018. Real estate market stats to feel more necessity to design green roofing in residential buildings, as economic effect from availability of green roofing at realization of developing projects has a prospect to exceed more than one third of expenses on the provision of its necessary amenities. At the same time it is impossible not to notice factors which slow down the development of the green roofing idea in our country. They are connected not only with economic conditions but also with formed stereotypes.
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Materials provided by TempStroySystem company