(time limit 20 minutes)
Over the past 3 years, young people have told us that the environment is one of the biggest issues that they feel needs to be dealt with. In make your mark, since 2018, of the 29,792 votes cast, nearly a quarter have been for environmental issues.
In October of this year we attended the Greater Manchester Green Summit, opened by our very own Youth Mayor, at the Lowry. This event highlighted the urgency and importance presented to us by the climate crisis. Speakers talked about the levels of pollution and C O 2 in Greater Manchester, how we have already used most of our carbon budget and how we were falling behind the targets set. Our Youth Councillors also attended the Net Zero Conference where lecturers from Salford University and the Royal Horticultural Society, demonstrated how we can use green, blue and brown roofs, as well as living walls to help the environment. With the information from both these events, we felt that we should bring this to your attention so Oldham can take action.
So what is a green roof? Simply, it is the roof of a building that is partially or completely covered with vegetation and growing medium planted over a waterproof barrier. A variety of this type of roof is the brown roof, which is where the plants self-seed from windblown and bird lime seed dispersal. A blue roof is quite simply a roof designed for the retention of rainwater and can be combined with green or brown roofs so that the captured water can irrigate the plants. Finally, if we take a green roof, turn it vertically and put it on the side of a building then it becomes a living wall.
We know that the installation of these types of roofs and living walls can be as much as 75% more expensive than conventional roof and wall types, especially if the roof or wall is being retro fitted. However, in Germany where green roofs are common, a green roof can be expected to experience double or even triple the life of a standard roof, saving money in the future. Savings also come from the reduction in operational and maintenance costs. The ‘Investing in green roofs for climate adaptation’ report by the ignition project, showed this measure comprises of low operational costs and reduction in bills. It showed a 13% saving in wastewater charges and savings of 5% on energy costs for apartments in Salford. That same report showed that a brown roof on the Unicorn Grocery, Manchester, had an 18% saving on energy costs and a maintenance saving of 20%.
Use of green, brown and blue roofs is also fundamentally a perfect idea for a business’s reputation. The report asserted that by being more environmental conscious maintained or even increased the reputation of a business. This reputation also helped uplift the property and rental costs of their buildings.
But this motion is not about saving money it is about saving our planet. As we mentioned earlier, we are not meeting our targets in Greater Manchester, and we feel this intervention will help with that, while making our town a nicer, cleaner, and greener place to live and work.
The ‘Investing in a Green Greater Manchester report’ showed that for every square metre of a green roof or living wall it produces 1.7Kg of Oxygen per year while other studies have shown that living walls and roofs could capture 84g of carbon in the atmosphere. The report also showed that buildings with a green roof, on average, use 6.7% less energy to heat or cool the building and reduce noise pollution by up to 11db. A living wall on the other hand can reduce energy use by 8%, remove 18-35% of CO2 from surrounding areas and remove 200g of air born particles every year for every square metre. With this in mind, green roofs and living walls are ideally placed in high traffic, busy urban areas such as town centres.
With the number of hills in Oldham, flooding is perhaps not a major issue but with the amount of rain we have our drainage system must be under a lot of strain. With interventions such as living walls and roofs the amount of water runoff is significantly reduced, with the vegetation and substrate retaining up to 75% of water that is dropped on to it. This would help ease the pressure on our drainage and reduce the need for water treatment companies to process it. Again this would indirectly mean less energy is consumed.
As well as helping the environment having greenery in built-up areas also helps with residents’ mental health. It’s well known that endorphin levels increase when you feel calmer within nature. Greenery helps lower stress levels and generate lots of positive emotions. In placing Green Roofs and Green walls in place of brick and concrete it will impact on Oldham residents’ wellbeing and maybe even entice them to visit these places more often.
We have thought about where these roofs and walls could be placed. The new development of a green space in Oldham town centre would be an ideal start. Any businesses or flats built in this space could be designed with these specialist roofs and walls already fitted, saving on having to add them later. However, we also felt that roofs and living walls would be ideal retro fittings for buildings in parks, such as cafes, so that they fit better into the natural environment already there. Schools and colleges could be another space that have living walls which will not only reduce costs for already stretched budgets but will help teach young people about caring for the environment. Our favourite idea though is to add green or brown roofs and living walls to public transport stops and stations. These could be seeded with bee friendly plants and of course we could all call them…
…BUZZ Stops.
When we talk colleagues from other youth councils, through the GMYCA, Oldham always appears to be at the forefront of eco innovation. We are proud to discuss schemes such as Northern roots, how we are looking to install solar farms or how far our thinking outside the box is when we think to flood old mine shafts to heat local businesses. When we have looked at plans and development of the town centre and when we talk with Council officers there is no mention of living roofs and walls. We don’t believe that they have been discounted but perhaps over looked.
This Council resolves to:
· Investigate the feasibility of installing green roofs and living walls on buildings in Oldham;
· Consider supporting businesses and schools that wish to install green roofs and walls and;
· That Green Roofs and Walls are considered as part of the Council’s approach to climate change adaptation and resilience.
Minutes:
The Youth Council PROPOSED the following MOTION:
Green Roofs and Walls
‘Over the past 3 years, young people have told us that the environment is one of the biggest issues that they feel needs to be dealt with. In make your mark, since 2018, of the 29,792 votes cast, nearly a quarter have been for environmental issues.
In October of this year we attended the Greater Manchester Green Summit, opened by our very own Youth Mayor, at the Lowry. This event highlighted the urgency and importance presented to us by the climate crisis. Speakers talked about the levels of pollution and C O 2 in Greater Manchester, how we have already used most of our carbon budget and how we were falling behind the targets set. Our Youth Councillors also attended the Net Zero Conference where lecturers from Salford University and the Royal Horticultural Society, demonstrated how we can use green, blue and brown roofs, as well as living walls to help the environment. With the information from both these events, we felt that we should bring this to your attention so Oldham can take action.
So what is a green roof? Simply, it is the roof of a building that is partially or completely covered with vegetation and growing medium planted over a waterproof barrier. A variety of this type of roof is the brown roof, which is where the plants self-seed from windblown and bird lime seed dispersal. A blue roof is quite simply a roof designed for the retention of rainwater and can be combined with green or brown roofs so that the captured water can irrigate the plants. Finally, if we take a green roof, turn it vertically and put it on the side of a building then it becomes a living wall.
We know that the installation of these types of roofs and living walls can be as much as 75% more expensive than conventional roof and wall types, especially if the roof or wall is being retro fitted. However, in Germany where green roofs are common, a green roof can be expected to experience double or even triple the life of a standard roof, saving money in the future. Savings also come from the reduction in operational and maintenance costs. The ‘Investing in green roofs for climate adaptation’ report by the ignition project, showed this measure comprises of low operational costs and reduction in bills. It showed a 13% saving in wastewater charges and savings of 5% on energy costs for apartments in Salford. That same report showed that a brown roof on the Unicorn Grocery, Manchester, had an 18% saving on energy costs and a maintenance saving of 20%.
Use of green, brown and blue roofs is also fundamentally a perfect idea for a business’s reputation. The report asserted that by being more environmental conscious maintained or even increased the reputation of a business. This reputation also helped uplift the property and rental costs of their buildings.
But this motion is not about saving money it is about saving our planet. As we mentioned earlier, we are not meeting our targets in Greater Manchester, and we feel this intervention will help with that, while making our town a nicer, cleaner, and greener place to live and work.
The ‘Investing in a Green Greater Manchester report’ showed that for every square metre of a green roof or living wall it produces 1.7Kg of Oxygen per year while other studies have shown that living walls and roofs could capture 84g of carbon in the atmosphere. The report also showed that buildings with a green roof, on average, use 6.7% less energy to heat or cool the building and reduce noise pollution by up to 11db. A living wall on the other hand can reduce energy use by 8%, remove 18-35% of CO2 from surrounding areas and remove 200g of air born particles every year for every square metre. With this in mind, green roofs and living walls are ideally placed in high traffic, busy urban areas such as town centres.
With the number of hills in Oldham, flooding is perhaps not a major issue but with the amount of rain we have our drainage system must be under a lot of strain. With interventions such as living walls and roofs the amount of water runoff is significantly reduced, with the vegetation and substrate retaining up to 75% of water that is dropped on to it. This would help ease the pressure on our drainage and reduce the need for water treatment companies to process it. Again, this would indirectly mean less energy is consumed.
As well as helping the environment having greenery in built-up areas also helps with residents’ mental health. It’s well known that endorphin levels increase when you feel calmer within nature. Greenery helps lower stress levels and generate lots of positive emotions. In placing Green Roofs and Green walls in place of brick and concrete it will impact on Oldham residents’ wellbeing and maybe even entice them to visit these places more often.
We have thought about where these roofs and walls could be placed. The new development of a green space in Oldham town centre would be an ideal start. Any businesses or flats built in this space could be designed with these specialist roofs and walls already fitted, saving on having to add them later. However, we also felt that roofs and living walls would be ideal retro fittings for buildings in parks, such as cafes, so that they fit better into the natural environment already there. Schools and colleges could be another space that have living walls which will not only reduce costs for already stretched budgets but will help teach young people about caring for the environment. Our favourite idea though is to add green or brown roofs and living walls to public transport stops and stations. These could be seeded with bee friendly plants and of course we could all call them…
…BUZZ Stops.
When we talk colleagues from other youth councils, through the GMYCA, Oldham always appears to be at the forefront of eco innovation. We are proud to discuss schemes such as Northern roots, how we are looking to install solar farms or how far our thinking outside the box is when we think to flood old mine shafts to heat local businesses. When we have looked at plans and development of the town centre and when we talk with Council officers there is no mention of living roofs and walls. We don’t believe that they have been discounted but perhaps over-looked.
We therefore propose that this Council resolves to:
a. Investigate the feasibility of installing green roofs and living walls on buildings in Oldham;
b. Consider supporting businesses and schools that wish to install green roofs and walls and;
c. That Green Roofs and Walls are considered as part of the Council’s approach to climate change adaptation and resilience.’
Councillor Jabbar spoke in support of the Motion
Councillor Munroe spoke in support of the Motion
Councillor H. Gloster spoke in support of the Motion
Councillor Munroe MOVED and Councillor H. Gloster SECONDED the MOTION as presented by the Youth Council.
RESOLVED: