Evapotranspiration | The Green Economy Post: Green Careers, Green Business, Sustainability

The Green Economy’s Living Skin

By Chris de Morsella on August 24, 2009 3 Comments "Energy Saving Potentials and Air Quality Benefits of Urban Heat Island Mitigation", "Thermal Performance of Green Roofs through Field Evaluation", air pollution, brownfield restoration, Climate Change, CO2, concrete jungle, Department of Energy, DOE, energy, energy efficiency, environmental footprint, evapotranspiration, global warming, green design, green economy, green parking lots, green roofs, green walls, heat wave Europe 2003, heat waves, insulation, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, National Research Council of Canada, natural environment, natural habitat, peak energy demand, potable water, shade trees, shading, smog, South Coast Air Quality Management District, sustainable economy, thermal mass, urban design, urban forest, urban habitat, urban heat island, water pollution, water quality, Water Scarcity, wetland restoration

Green roofs, green walls, green parking lots, shade trees, the greening of urban spaces in general, the restoration of urban waterways, wetlands and the re-greening of brownfield areas; can all be thought of as different techniques to nurture a green living skin over regions of urban development. While there are many important differences between each of these separate techniques as well as their underlying technologies they all share a common overarching goal of bringing an analog of the natural living green skin that characterizes the natural landscape back into our urban areas. They all promote the restoration and re-integration of these heavily populated areas back into the surrounding natural environment.

Green Parking Lots: Part II – How Alternate Paving Helps

By Chris de Morsella on May 20, 2009 1 Comment alternate paver, aquifer, asphalt, brick, cobbles, concrete, cool paving, environmental design, EPA, evapotranspiration, grass paving blocks, gravel, green building, green parking lot, impermeable, impervious pavers, Land Development Today magazine, Maryland., natural stone, overflow capacity, parking stall dimension, parking stall., paving blocks, paving stones, permeable, permeable paver, pervious concrete, pervious pavers, plowing, porous asphalt, porous pavement, retention basin, runoff, snow, stormwater, sustainable building, urban design, urban heat island effect, water system, wood mulch

This, the second article in our three part series on green parking lots continues by looking at some of the green parking lot design techniques and materials and how they help make parking surfaces more environmentally friendly and improve the urban space most of us live in. It suggests how smaller lots and smaller parking stall sizes, both acting to reduce the overall size of the parking lot is the very first thing to consider when designing a green parking lot. It then goes on to discuss in some detail the subject of alternate pavers that can absorb rain, allowing it to infiltrate into the ground below and thus substantially reduce runoff.