Green Roofs - Greater Greater Washington

Green jobs should be part of Clean Rivers

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 11:25:00 EDT

DC residents and business owners are footing the bill to fix the city's outdated stormwater infrastructure. Let's get green jobs in the bargain.

Stormwater runoff is a byproduct of our developing city. We've turned much of our land into paved streets, parking lots, sidewalks and rooftops; when it rains, millions of gallons of water rush into our antiquated storm-sewer system, which causes flooding and sends untreated sewage and other pollutants into area rivers.

The city entered into a legal agreement with the EPA in 2005 to end sewer overflows into the Potomac, Anacostia, and Rock Creek waterways by 2025. To meet this goal DC Water developed the $2.6 billion Clean Rivers Project, which will fix and replace the DC's outdated storm sewer system.

The project is being financed almost exclusively by DC residents, which means that by 2019 the average resident's monthly DC water bill will exceed $100. However, few DC residents are getting jobs as a result of this massive spending.

According to DC Water's most recent employment report, 85 employees on DC Water projects live in North Carolina, more than the 63 employees who live in Wards 7 and 8. It's time to seriously consider how we get the most bang for our collective buck: clean rivers and green jobs.

Reducing and ultimately eliminating sewage overflows into our rivers is the primary focus of the Clean Rivers Project, but it doesn't have to be the only return we see on this massive investment of ratepayer money. With political will and imagination, we could use these billions of dollars to create thousands of living wage green jobs and spur green neighborhood revitalization across the city as well.

Late last year, DC Water entered into a preliminary partnership agreement with the EPA to explore green infrastructure as an alternative to the current big-tunnel approach. Solutions could include rain gardens, green roofs, and pervious pavers, which unlike traditional pavement allows water to filter through to the ground below.

This could create thousands of living wage, career-track jobs digging rain gardens, planting trees and maintaining green roofs. Our initial research suggests that investing $40 million a year in green infrastructure could create more than 300 living wage jobs.

DC Water could divert hundreds of millions of dollars into green infrastructure over the next 12 years. These green jobs would go a long way to dealing with stubborn unemployment numbers in wards 5, 7, and 8 and create new tax revenue for the city.

However, these green jobs won't reach unemployed DC residents unless the leaders at DC Water make it a priority. We need an organized base of ratepayers, job-seekers, businesses and environmentalists holding city leaders accountable for training and preparing unemployed DC workers for these green jobs and holding contractors and DC Water and its contractors accountable for hiring them.

Focusing on green job creation in the Clean Rivers Project will also broaden public support for green infrastructure—public support that can make sure green infrastructure projects get done. DC Water will inevitably face hurdles navigating DC's maze of local, federal and private land to install hundreds of acres of green infrastructure. They will need long-term city-wide resident buy-in to hold local and federal government and agencies accountable for working together to fund, build, and maintain these projects.

With political will, green infrastructure can be a viable solution to our stormwater problems. Our organization, the Washington Interfaith Network, a local citizen power organization made up of faith, labor and community based organizations, is building a citywide coalition supporting green infrastructure in the Clean Rivers Project. We would like it to include a clear comprehensive plan for green job creation and neighborhood revitalization along with river restoration.

On Earth Day 2013, we will gather 800 neighborhood leaders at Temple Sinai, next to Rock Creek Park, with officials from DC Water and City Council to make public commitments for creating such a plan in the next six months. With $2.6 billion in debt to pay back, we can't afford to do otherwise.

9 comments

Ward 5, green job center?

Wed, 06 Feb 2013 08:48:00 EDT

by David Alpert

Harriet Tregoning talks about Ward 5's industrial land and how it could become a hub for green jobs, like building green roofs. (Elevation DC)

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Arlington chair says keep Tregoning and Klein (Sep 16, 2010)
Gray keeps Harriet Tregoning! And others (Dec 17, 2010)
Right on, Harriet Tregoning! (Mar 4, 2008)
Marc: no need to parc (Oct 1, 2008)
Ward 5 needs a vision beyond "no bus/streetcar parking" (Nov 16, 2012)

And...

Tue, 29 Jan 2013 08:37:00 EDT

by David Alpert

The Cafritz project in Riverdale Park is officially on hold. (Diamondback) ... Might CFO Gandhi not be around much longer? (Examiner) ... 17th St NE will get 26 solar-powered townhouses. (UrbanTurf) ... DC has a lot of green roofs. (WAMU)

Comment

Improved access to Cafritz development is a step forward (Sep 27, 2011)
With risks, rewards, Cafritz development must be done right (Sep 14, 2011)
Cafritz project tests Prince George's commitment to TOD (Jan 31, 2012)
Can a commercial enterprise succeed if hidden from view? (Aug 18, 2011)
Want a Whole Foods? Add residences, or face traffic (Aug 17, 2011)

Green roofs get more green

Mon, 30 Jul 2012 09:21:00 EDT

by Steven Yates

Green roofs can be good for the environment, but they can also be good for the pocketbook for DC residents, as they are eligible for rebates from fees related to stormwater runoff. (Post)

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And...

Sat, 26 May 2012 13:53:00 EDT

by David Edmondson

The hidden world of New York's rooftops is surprisingly suburban. (WebUrbanist) ... Metro's makes its new Rush+ maps by hand. (Fox5) ... McMansions are making a comeback. (SmartMoney)

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Farm the roof

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 08:47:00 EDT

by Steven Yates

Taking green roofs to a new level, one developer wants to put farms on the roofs of the planned Capital Crossing I-395 air rights development. He hopes the small farms will be an attraction for certain restaurants. (Post)

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And...

Thu, 20 Oct 2011 08:12:00 EDT

by Eric Fidler

DC's green roofs are good for the environment and recreation. (Miami Herald) ... MD's House approved the governor's gerrymander. (Post) ... Moving from a poor to a middle-class neighborhood reduces your chance of obesity. (Science Now)

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3 questions with Md. delegate candidate Dana Beyer (Jul 9, 2010)
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Novel rooftop house is attractive. Is it practical?

Wed, 28 Sep 2011 11:55:00 EDT

by Alison Crowley

An unconventional entry in this year's Solar Decathlon brings low-footprint home design to city rooftops. It has pleased the crowds, but not the judges because it has two significant drawbacks: comfort and up-front cost.

Photo by Stephen*Iliffe on Flickr.

This year's Solar Decathlon is being held in West Potomac Park, near the Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial. The event will wrap up this Sunday, and you can see this home and others if you head down to the event.

Team New York, comprised of students from City College of New York, brings to this year's Decathlon (sponsored by the US Department of Energy) an innovative attempt to embrace an oft-neglected urban surface. Their "Solar Roofpod" is a 746-square-foot home specifically intended to be built on top of the existing flat roofs of the four- to ten-story buildings that cover much of the Big Apple.

"Solar Roofpod" may not be winning in the Solar Decathlon's ratings, but the inventive design has sparked plenty of talk about the feasibility of its premise. At less than 800 square feet, the home resembles in size many Manhattan apartments, but claims to reduce utility expenses by $2,500 annually by generating 11.6 megawatt hours of electricity per year through its solar panel system.

Situated on a rooftop, the home has direct access to light, wind, and water, which the team claims will help reduce overall energy costs in conjunction with the energy-conserving design. The module doesn't neglect to take its "host building" into account either: a steel beam Dunnage Garden built around the home helps protect the building below from absorbing the pod's radiation, and provides space for a rooftop garden.

Photo by Team New York

Despite Team New York's obvious ingenuity, its current standing at number 18 out of 19 participating teams doesn't bode well for the potential feasibility of the project on a larger scale.

Although not all of the ten judging metrics have been scored yet, TNY did not fare well on Affordability, coming in second to last with a rating of 61.4 out of 100 possible points. Affordability is an extremely significant metric in this contest, as the Decathlon touts "cost-effective, energy-efficient, and attractive" home design ideas. Though, perhaps unsurprisingly, the judges' dismal score hasn't hurt the public's impression of the Solar Roofpod. Team New York is currently in second place in the People's Choice Awards, in which the public votes on their favorite house.

From an urban planning perspective, the Solar Roofpod offers a space-conscious solution for building new single-family units in an already fully-developed neighborhood and promotes greater use of solar photovoltaic panels and rooftop gardens. There may not be much room in New York's densely packed streets to build new detached townhouses, but there's certainly open space available on top of its existing buildings to give an individual, or perhaps a couple, room to stretch out.

Solar Roofpod's popularity seems to indicate willingness on the part of Americans to suspend their disbelief and imagine what a city like New York might look like if, on top of large office and apartment buildings, one might be able to look up and see a diminutive home. But because of its shortcomings in practicality and livability—Team New York came in dead last in the Comfort category earlier this week—the idea may fade into the sunset once the Decathlon ends.

14 comments

Solar Decathlon home will house a Deanwood family (Sep 30, 2011)
Solar Decathlon to be held in West Potomac Park (Feb 23, 2011)
Arlington gets a green house (Apr 9, 2010)
New York public spaces good and bad (Oct 8, 2006)
Now that is a starchitect (Jul 21, 2008)

And...

Thu, 23 Jun 2011 08:51:00 EDT

by Eric Fidler

Virginia's first lady is hosting a clean-up of the W&OD Trail. (Post) ... Virginia is considering offshore wind farms. (Post) ... Philadelphia bus shelters get mini green roofs, and Casey Trees' new headquarters gets a rain garden. (The Dirt, WAMU)

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Roof garden for the city

Sat, 23 Apr 2011 10:33:00 EDT

by David Alpert

For Earth Day, Bread for the City is building a rooftop garden with vegetables and even beehives. Donations will help make it great. (Beyond Bread)

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The growing classroom (May 21, 2009)

Benefits of green roofs

Wed, 03 Nov 2010 08:49:00 EDT

by Erik Weber

The right mix of soil and plants on your roof can reduce your cooling bills by cutting heat absorption as much as 84% in the summer. Green roofs also mitigate pressure on the city's combined sewer system. (The Dirt, Eric Fidler)

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