Clean air for better living

by Abigail Knowles Wolfe (BPRW)

How much of our natural environment do we ignore or take for granted until necessity becomes the proverbial mother or invention? It’s a shame that human beings don’t take instinctive advantage of their surroundings through intelligent design until natural resources are dwindling and pollution escalating. Take “green roofs” for example. Gardens planted on building rooftops are beginning to soften urban scenery as well as improving air quality for millions of city dwellers often plagued with asthma and other air pollution related ailments.

More African American woman suffer from asthma than any other demographic group in the nation according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human services. Furthermore according to statistics from the non-profit initiative Clear the Air and the Environmental Protection Agency 71% of African Americans lived in counties that violated federal air pollution standards in 2002 compared to 58% of the Anglo population.

Urban areas often struggle to find enough green space for children and families to enjoy and safe parks can be few and far between. Green roofing, or advanced gardening technology utilized to create green spaces on roof tops may be the answer to this growing problem. According to a press release published on the American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS) as provided by BioScience Magazine, green roofs cut heat loss from buildings during winter and reduce air conditioning costs during summer months in addition to reducing the urban “heat-island effect” which causes cities to retain heat during the summer months an uncomfortable degree or two higher than normal.

Improvements in structural planning may prove to make city life and city breathing more pleasant as green roofing and other “green” innovations provide a healthier environment for all to enjoy.