Introduction (GR)

Background:

 Easton, Pennsylvania, was founded in 1752 and is located on the eastern side of Pennsylvania, on the border of New Jersey (Hindash, 2018). During the Industrial Revolution, Easton emerged as a commerce hub, serving as a large port for transportation via rivers and railways. Today, Easton is used as a residential and commerce area, the home of Lafayette College, and a common location for residents commuting to New York City for work. Easton’s past and present has sparked its development an urban area, leading to several environmental issues that are common of urban areas.

Easton’s main environmental concerns include air quality, water quality, the urban heat island effect, produce access, and flooding. Each of these issues is partially caused by the increase of impervious surfaces, common with urban development. Impervious surfaces are areas that cannot absorb water. They often replace vegetation and other natural landscapes, thus erasing many of the benefits that they provide.

For example, urban areas with a high density of impervious surfaces often experience the urban heat island effect. The evaporation of water from grass removes latent heat from the surrounding air, effectively cooling the air around it. However, urban areas that lack natural vegetation and grass often experience a spike in temperature compared to a less urban counterpart, due to this lack of latent heat absorption. Trees and vegetation also help to filter out pollutants from runoff and precipitation; both air pollution and noise pollution have become more prevalent in the city as it has developed. Additionally, with the increase in population density, and subsequent decrease of natural landscape and vegetation, residents of Easton have decreased access to fresh produce.

Paramount to these concerns is Easton’s issue of flood control and urban development. Easton has a long history of flooding due to the prevalence of impervious surfaces and its geographic location. In 1955, Hurricanes Connie and Diane swept through Easton, causing $10 million in damages and claiming 70 lives (Frantz, 2015). More recently, there were massive floods in 2004, 2005, and 2006 (Rhodin, 2011).  In events of high precipitation, water which would normally be absorbed into the ground is impeded and instead sits on the surface of the city causing damage and flooding (Arnold, 1996).

One popular proposed solution to the many environmental problems raised with the increased prevalence of residents in urban areas is green roofs. Green roofs are not new to urban infrastructure and building design; originally implemented as moss on rooftops to help with insulation, a green roof is “an extension of the existing roof which involves, at a minimum, high-quality waterproofing, root repellent system, drainage system, filter cloth, a lightweight growing medium, and plants” (Green Roofs for Healthy Cities, n.d.). They either partially or fully cover roofs in vegetative material and are engineered to manage the weight, runoff, and root systems associated with the vegetation. Technological advancements and design improvements of houses eventually eliminated the need for green vegetation as a means for insulation. In the 1960s, they resurfaced within urban design as a relatively inexpensive, sustainable, and innovative way to attenuate the negative impacts of modern housing materials. Today, green roofs are used as an urban planning tool; they can be specifically catered to individual building specifications and the intended goals of the building owner and community. Intensive data collection, interviews, diligent technical planning, and economic assessments are used to craft optimal green roofs for each building’s wants and needs.

The benefits of green roofs are expansive and multifaceted. Predominantly, green roofs help to improve primary urban environmental issues, such as air quality, stormwater management, sound attenuation, produce availability, and aesthetics (General Service Administration, 2011). However, green roofs can also be designed to help improve secondary urban issues, which do not directly impact the natural environment but can positively improve individuals within the buildings and areas surrounding green roofs. These secondary improvements include reduction of energy costs, job creation, community development, education, and thermal performance in buildings (ZinCo, 2013). When properly planned and designed, green roofs serve as an economically and environmentally sustainable solution to many of the adverse issues presented within the built urban environment. Figure 1 is an example of an intensive green roof.

Problem Definition:

 Many, if not all, of the environmental issues experienced by the city of Easton could potentially be addressed by the implementation of green roofs. However, in order to evaluate whether green roofs are a viable solution for Easton specifically, we must consider the social, political, technical and economic contexts of Easton and how they may intersect with green roof infrastructure.

Within Easton’s social context, there are several factors to be considered in order to mitigate unforeseen consequences due to green roof installation. The first, and likely the most important, social consideration is identifying what issues community members feel need to be addressed. In order for a solution like green roofs to adequately address environmental issues in a way in which the community supports, the issues must be defined by the community members themselves. Another social consideration is the urban trajectory of Easton. Although the environmental movement in Easton encourages sustainability and environmentalism, it is still a growing urban city. In order for green roofs to be effective, those working toward implementing them must keep in mind that the city will continue to expand and urbanize, and future environmental initiatives must account for this.

Easton’s political context is also important to consider before pursuing green roof implementation. A large political consideration in Easton regarding green roofs is how to draft policy in a manner that incentivizes their installation in an equitable way across the city. To do this effectively, the distribution of flood plains and average household income must be referenced. A policy which does not mitigate an upfront cost would likely not be ideal for Easton because many of the households that experience the most severe environmental issues are of lower socioeconomic status and likely do not have the economic resources to install a green roof (Frankel & Goldman, 2017). Furthermore, a policy that requires the installation of green roofs to address environmental concerns does not account for the variability within the city of Easton and the possibility that green roofs may not be ideal.

Technically, there are several considerations necessary prior to green roof installation. The viability of a green roof on a specific building is dependent on many of the building’s characteristics. In Easton, zoning codes specify maximum building heights in each district. Additionally, the historic district, located in downtown Easton, has very strict codes regarding new buildings and renovations. Each construction project must be drafted and passed by a committee prior to the project commencement. Finally, the slope of a roof and the maximum dead load that it can withstand are technical barriers for green roof installation. Before a green roof is pursued, a building must be extensively analyzed to determine if a green roof is viable.

The economic costs of green roof design and construction are driven by the type of green roof, the scope of each component, and the aspects of the roof. Macroeconomic factors will also certainly affect green roof cost. Green roofs cost between $10.00 and $30.00 per square foot to install. Maintenance costs range from $0.75 to $1.50 per square foot. Traditional roofs, however, typically cost between $7.00 and $12.00 per square foot (Learn How Much It Costs to Install a Flat Roof, 2018). One of the largest benefits of green roofs is their long lifespan of 30 to 50 years compared to traditional roofs that typically last between 20 and 30 years (Feng, 2018).

Solution:

 We do not believe that green roofs are a “one size fits all” solution to Easton’s environmental problems, nor do we believe that we should be the determinants of whether or not green roofs are right for the neighborhoods of Easton. Rather, we hope to provide all of the necessary resources for communities to decide whether or not green roofs are the right solution to their environmental problems, given their resources, values, and contexts.

Addressing and Overcoming Challenges:

In order to provide the necessary information to help Easton solve their environmental problems, we will need to accurately determine what these issues are. We hypothesize what these issues may be, but will need to determine if these match the thoughts and opinions of community members. This raises issues within survey development and implementation given time and financial constraints. In order to address these challenges, we will use data to determine the environmental issues of each neighborhood in Easton via the Easton Matters Report. The report surveys 311 residents of Easton to get an understanding of the city’s identified environmental issues. Although the sample size and format of the study partially restricts the accuracy and breadth of the results, we believe that this survey will act as a useful tool for determining community perceptions given our constraints.

One major challenge of adding green roofs is funding and ownership. Green roofs can be installed on private or public buildings; private buildings are generally easier to install, while public buildings provide several financial and political obstacles. The private sector faces the brunt of financial costs while the general public reaps the majority of the benefits. Maintenance requirements differ significantly between private and public ownership. Ultimately, green roof implementation feasibility varies widely on building ownership. We worked to consider this dichotomy when developing our framework, so that our tool may ultimately be used for buildings of both ownership types.

Finally, time served as a significant challenge towards developing a solution. The feasibility of implementing a green roof, much less reaping the environmental benefits of green roofs, within the one academic semester significantly limited our project’s goals. To overcome this, we will develop a framework that can be utilized now or in the near future, and allows community members to utilize our resources at their convenience.

Goals/Recommendations:

 Our goals approaching this project include considering the relevant contexts of Easton concerning green roofs, in order to determine if green roofs are ultimately “worth it” for Easton. Our overall goal is not to implement a green roof “by any means necessary,” but to critically assess if the installments of green roofs are the best option to solve the environmental issues identified by the community. Our ultimate product is a neighborhood-specific framework. The framework accurately considers the many aspects that are relevant to green roof implementation, provides our recommendation and keeps the community members as the ultimate decision makers. By producing this framework, we will provide all of the necessary information and resources to enable community members and civic leaders. With this information, they can determine if green roofs are “worth it” for them and their communities. To view this framework, click here.

 

To read the Social Context section of our report, click here.