While green roof technologies are increasingly employed in Northern European countries,adoption is progressing at amuch slower rate in the US.This manuscript discusses results of a survey that quantified knowledge,bar...While green roof technologies are increasingly employed in Northern European countries,adoption is progressing at amuch slower rate in the US.This manuscript discusses results of a survey that quantified knowledge,barriers,and perceivedcosts and benefits to use of green roof technology among a sample of architects and building owners in the Midwest.The survey also examined conditions that may encourage use of this technology among the respondents.Resultsshow that many respondents do not fully recognize the economic or performance advantages offered by green roof technologies.The payback period for economic advantage is longer than owners are willing to consider.Both owners andarchitects possess a wide range of misconceptions about the performance advantages of green roofs.While green roof technologyoffers clear environmental advantages such as reduced stormwater runoff,increased habitat,and cooler temperaturesthat mitigate heat island effects,many building owner respondents either do not know about or value these advantages.This research quantified potential adopters’perceptions of an innovative technology and the survey results areinterpreted and discussed within the conceptual framework of innovation diffusion literature.Strategies to hasten theadoption of green roof technology are suggested.展开更多
基金Meg Calkins is Assistant Professor,Department of Landscape Architecture,Ball State University,Architecture Building 226,Ball State University,Muncie,IN 47306,Phone:765.285.2183,e-mail:calkins@bsu.edu.
文摘While green roof technologies are increasingly employed in Northern European countries,adoption is progressing at amuch slower rate in the US.This manuscript discusses results of a survey that quantified knowledge,barriers,and perceivedcosts and benefits to use of green roof technology among a sample of architects and building owners in the Midwest.The survey also examined conditions that may encourage use of this technology among the respondents.Resultsshow that many respondents do not fully recognize the economic or performance advantages offered by green roof technologies.The payback period for economic advantage is longer than owners are willing to consider.Both owners andarchitects possess a wide range of misconceptions about the performance advantages of green roofs.While green roof technologyoffers clear environmental advantages such as reduced stormwater runoff,increased habitat,and cooler temperaturesthat mitigate heat island effects,many building owner respondents either do not know about or value these advantages.This research quantified potential adopters’perceptions of an innovative technology and the survey results areinterpreted and discussed within the conceptual framework of innovation diffusion literature.Strategies to hasten theadoption of green roof technology are suggested.
