From mud thatch to clay tile, roofing materials are about as varied as
the houses underneath them. But with a $1 million grant from the U.S.
Department of Energy,
St. Joseph's University students will test the
limits of green roofing materials, trying out everything from gravel to
plastic-based fabric to recycled sneaker rubber. By building an
expansive green roof on the deck of the University's Science Center,
St. Joes associate dean of Natural Science, Math and Computer Science
Mike McCann will monitor the drainage of four different green roof
sections to see which performs best.
"A big goal with the green roof project is public dissemination," says
McCann. "What we want to do is be able to tell anyone who is looking to
do a green roof in this area of the country 'here is some performance
data that might help guide your design.' "
This grant will also fund a study of switchgrass cultivation. Widely
thought to be an excellent source of biofuels, switchgrass growth may be
impacted by climate change. Through university study and field research
at National Science Foundation Long Term Ecological Research site
Konza Prairie, near Manhattan, Kan. students will examine the effects of
changes in precipitation, temperature, and carbon dioxide on the growth
of switchgrass to see if it may one day become a sustainable fuel
source. McCann and the St. Joe's brass hope these projects will help
formally establish their proposed Institute for Environmental Stewardship.
"We expect development communities to be very interested as well as
people looking at global climate change impacts," says McCann. "But this
grant is going to support undergraduate and graduate students engaged
in these projects. We are not doing this to train switchgrass
researchers. We are doing this to train sustainable researchers to do
all sorts of jobs."
Source: Mike McCann, St. Joseph's University
Writer: John Steele