Does this ever happen in North America?
While Germany has at least 9-10 times more Green Roofs – Can the USA catch up?
While in North America the average size of Green Roof is around 5,000sf. This size would be considered a small size Green Roof in Germany. The average size in Germany is likely over 25,000 sf and the amount of Green Roofs build every year is probably 10 times higher.
Despite higher energy costs and taxes in Germany, the costs for the installation are lower.
Because in Germany they build them in less than the half time, with fewer people, with hardly any middle men (from roofing), without pre-planted plastic boxes, and without consistently reinventing the wheel. They don’t try to sell roofing warranties – they are actually installing Green Roofs. They also spend no or less time posting their projects on all social platforms and don’t need to say this is the biggest, nicest, most divers, highest or any other superlatives. Common sense?
Germany just does it because they understood the environmental and social benefits of Green Roof in mass production instead of trying to grow one carrot in a city for millions of people just to be on TV. Green Roofs in Germany are done for everybody vs. in North America it is often done for personal vanity.
I am now 16 years in the North American Green Roof industry after being 20 years doing Green Roof in Germany and North America is still researching. When does North America think big?
By Jörg Breuning
