New Mexico Highlands University's Green Roof

Diamond and Schmitt Architects

New Mexico Highland University, in Las Vegas, NM, was in need a of new student center built with sustainable building technology.

According to the NMHU, an "...outdated and nonfunctional Mortimer Hall..." was demolished to make room for the new student center, complete with a green roof.

The building, said NMHU president Jim Fries, "...will be a center of activity for our campus,” Fries said. “It will offer new amenities that will enhance the quality of campus life for our growing student body.”

The Canadian architectural firm, Diamond and Schmitt, partnered with the Albuquerque, NM firm, Studio Southwest, to design and build this 65,000 square foot, 3-story building.

It includes, "...a dining facility for the residence halls, a flexible theater space, student service offices for Campus Life and Housing, computer lab, game room, multicultural conference space, ballroom, campus bookstore, campus post office, café, copy center, and an executive boardroom for campus governance groups.  A skywalk will connect the student center to the Donnelly Library."

In addition to a green roof, the building, which hopefully will attain LEED Silver, include the use of geothermal energy, high efficiency lighting, rain collection, renewable wood, and high R-value insulation.

Costs were estimated at $18 million and construction completion is scheduled for 2011.

Ireland's Green Roofs Videos

Ireland is one of the world's greenest countries, at least in terms of flora and fauna. However, Ireland is also the home of ancient and modern green roofs.

Long before China, Chicago, or New York put green roofs on buildings, the Irish had done it in Newgrange. Newgrange, is home of a megalithic burial site, a mound that covers about an acre, covered with a green roof. The site was thought to be built around 32oo BC, and is typical of other mound sites throughout the world, all of which have green roofs. Free Shipping on any purchase over $25

What has Newgrange to do with modern green roofs in Ireland? Everything! Historically, Ireland's agrarian culture and temperate climate has created in its populace a love of the land and local environment. It should come as no surprise then, that "...Miles Sampson, a County Clare-based architect specializing in sustainable homes," has created a very green home in Ireland, with a series of green roofs. Click here for the lowest available Air France fares.

According to Matt Hickman at Mother Nature Network,

"The building of one of his low-energy homes, a “Geomorphological House,” in the rural west of Ireland has been captured on film and even if you aren’t intrigued by the home’s various green features (grass sod roof, vacuum tube solar panels, recycled newspaper insulation, heat recovery ventilation system, etc.)."

To highlight his design, videos were made describing their features and construction. They are quite enjoyable! Please enjoy the videos of this great house with green roofs in Ireland!

A New Green Roof in Delhi, Michigan

OK, the picture you see doesn't have a green roof, but the green roof is there, really! According to "Capital Gains," the Township of Delhi, near Lansing, Michigan put a 7200 square foot green roof on the Sam Corey Senior Center.

The Senior Center, in addition to having a green roof, also has "...a geothermal closed-loop ground source heat pump." Additionally, it is the first LEED-certified building in the Township. The Township decided to use the green roof to mitigate storm water runoff and reduce HVAC costs. The Township estimates the green roof will absorb 9/10 of an inch of rain and save 35-50% in HVAC costs. $20 Off AeroGardens

The green roof was built using elements from LiveRoof. Headquartered in the Netherlands, LiveRoof uses a modular system, making installation and maintenance easy. Similar to flats of annuals, if changes need to be made or changes in the design are desired, it is simple as replacing the flat.


As I mention in the title section of the blog, green roofs provide tremendous cost and environmental benefits without being overly complex or expensive. Were I a taxpayer in Delhi Township or the state of Michigan, I would congratulate the responsible parties for wise use of my tax dollars.

Manhattan's Green Roofs Grow

New York City, and Manhattan in particular, has a great collection of buildings with green roofs. Now, the city can add another series of green roofs found in Clinton Park.

Ten Arquitectos and Enrique Norten have designed a unique mixed-use structure that not only puts housing units on a diagonal, but also puts a green roof on top of each floor. Mountain House Freeze-Dried Food

World Architecture News.com writes,

Each floor steps up from the one below, allowing for unobstructed views to the park and Hudson River and providing private roof terraces with green roofs on every floor.

As one can see from the picture, the amount of green roofs would appear to cover the entire footprint of the building. A green roof of this size will improve storm water runoff management, as well reduce fine particulate matter air pollution. Water Barrels and Storage

The building itself, as mentioned above is mixed-use. Again, from WAN,

...the building fills a void in the urban fabric by integrating multiple commercial uses... providing 900 housing units in the 27 floors above. The base include(s) a 50,000 sq-ft auto showroom with 250,000 sq ft of service floors below grade, a 30,000 sq-ft horse stable for the NYPD Mounted Police, a 7,500 square-foot market, a 30,000 square-foot health club, and 200 parking spaces.

The diagonal layout allows not only for multiple green roofs over a single footprint, the design also reduces the urban heat island effect by moving mass away from its neighboring buildings. This building will not only architectural interest to city, but provide much needed environmental benefits as well.

Walmart's Green Roof

Although Walmart is a company that many in the US love to hate, they have been taking some very serious steps in area of sustainability. These steps include a green roof experiment in one of their Chicago-area stores (#5402). $20 Off AeroGardens

According to the green roof supplier, Roofscapes Inc., the 74,000 sq. ft. roof was complete in 2006. Why would I write about something that is 3 years old? Simply, I wanted to see if there was any follow-up.

I have contacted Walmart to get an answer and am eager to share it when I get it. Mountain House Freeze-Dried Food

The most important aspects of this story are the following:

1. Green roofs are commercially desirable, as demonstrated by multiple suppliers.
2. Green roofs are considered valuable to property owners.
3. Green roofs demonstrably reduce storm water runoff and roof temperature.

As an advocate of green roofs, I compliment Walmart on experimenting with them and am eager to hear their results (and hope for more on new Walmarts!).

Washington D.C.'s New Green Roof and Labyrinth

The World Resources Institute issued a press release on 08 October 2008 that the American Psychological Association (APA) has opened a green roof and labyrinth in Washington, DC.

From the press release:

This collaborative effort is part of our overall mission to create open spaces that heal the body, mind, and spirit,” said Mary Wyatt, executive director of TKF Foundation, the lead funder for the project.

The APA, in their decision to create the green roof and labyrinth, realized the benefits of green roofs, namely reduced air pollution and storm water runoff.

Green roofs are not new to Washington DC. The George Washington University put a green roof on one of its student centers. Additionally, Washington, DC city government has provided over $300,000 to reduce storm water runoff.

Organizations such as the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and World Resources Institute not only encourage the building of green roofs, but also help with funding and managing the projects. This involvement helps to raise awareness of the value of green roofs, as well their contribution to clean air and water.

George Washington University Gets a Green Roof

Green roofs can improve air pollution, reduce fine particulate matter, and reduce storm water runoff. Additionally, flat green roofs reduce heating and cooling cost, thus reducing energy consumption.

George Washington University's School of Business is putting a flat green roof at the Elliott School of International Affairs City View Room Terrace this summer (2008). This news was reported in the GWSB newsletter.

GWSB M.B.A. student Brett Kaplan, helped secure funding for GW’s first-ever campus flat green roof. "This project is important to GW because it a major step forward in terms of enhancing the school’s sustainability profile. Aside from the environmental benefits, the green roof is designed to stand as a visual symbol of GW’s commitment to sustainability. The roof is meant to be a stepping stone for other green campus initiatives. If students, for instance, see that it’s possible to get this particular initiative passed, they will feel like their own campus greening ideas can also be brought to life, Kaplan said."

Not only is the building a commitment to sustainability, but it also will be used for educational purposes. The University is also going to use it as a show piece demonstrate its commitment to green technology and sustainability.

The 2,000 square foot roof is estimated to cost $25,000, 70% of which will be provided by the university. Grants and support from the student environmental association will provide the other 30%.