Ron Solomon: "Policy Issues on White Roofs: Heat Islands, Public Health, and Global Warming".
At the onset, I do not make comments about "Global Warming", as I am not qualified to make statements of fact, on topics that are millions of years old. Man's contribution to "Global Warming" is impossible to measure, and therefore, to know.
1 Policy Issues on White Roofs: Heat Islands, Public Health,
and Global Warming Discussion with Indian Electricity Regulators UC Berkeley
Faculty Club July 10, 2013 Ronnen Levinson Staff Scientist Heat Island Group
Environmental Energy Technologies Division Lawrence Berkeley National Lab (510)
2 The July 1995 Chicago
heat wave resulted in 739 reported* deaths The highest risk group lived on the
top floors of buildings with black roofs Photo credit: Gary Braasch *More than
250 addi0onal deaths not autopsied 2
3 The August 2003 European heat wave killed 52,000 people Temperature anomalies reached 10 C 18,000 Italians died (2006 assessment) hhp://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/iotd/view.php?id=3714 Country Italy France Germany Spain England & Wales Portugal Smaller countries Total of above Fatali-es 18,257 14,802 7,000 4,130 2,139 2,099 4,025 52,452 3
4 The 2010 Russia heat wave caused 10,000-15,000 deaths Centered Southeast of Moscow Temperature anomalies reached 12 C hhp://takvera.blogspot.com/2011/10/climate- change- frac0onal- ahribu0on.html 4
5 Human activity + dark roofs and pavements combine to heat urban air The urban heat island effect : Makes cities hotter than surrounding rural areas Leads to greater energy use, worse air quality, and reduced quality of life Urban fabric above tree canopy Other Pavements Roofs Vegeta0on 5
6 Air conditioning is projected to continue its rise in India 60 Residen-al AC Units 50 Millions of AC Units Annual Growth: 14% Source: World Bank 6
7 Cooling our Planet 7
8 Solar- reflective surfaces cool the globe via negative radiative forcing Source: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 8
9 Whitening 100 m 2 of gray roofing cancels out the emission of 10 tons of CO 2 9
10 Whitening all eligible urban flat roofs worldwide offsets 24 Gt CO 2 e Over 20 years (the life of a roof) this is 1.2 Gt/yr 2/3 of a year s worldwide emission Equivalent to taking half the cars in the world off the road for 20 years There are about 600 million passenger cars worldwide, each emitting ~4 t CO 2 / yr 10
11 Full white roof potential avoids 500 medium- sized coal- fired power plants = 100 coal- fired plants Equivalent to 1,000 medium-sized gas-fired power plants Globally, power plants emit ~15 Gt CO 2 each year Amounts to 6,000 typical midsized power plants (2/3 coal, 1/3 gas) 11
12 For comparison, CFL deployment avoids emissions from 400 power plants = 100 coal- fired plants 12
13 Addressing urban heat islands also achieves urban resilience and global sustainability Building scale Up to 20% reduc0ons in cooling demand on top floor Improved thermal comfort and produc0vity in uncondi0oned buildings (e.g., homes, warehouses etc.) Longer las0ng roofs City scale Global scale Improved air quality a $10 billion energy and health cost reduc0on opportunity in the U.S. alone per year Reduced peak electricity demand and avoided adop0on of air condi0oning Greater resiliency to heat events and climate change Offset the warming effect of 24 gigatons of CO 2 equivalent to taking 500 coal power plants offline for 20 years Every 10 square meters of white roof = 0.5 tons of CO 2 offset per year 13
14 White Roofs Around the World 14
15 Almeria, Spain provides a real- world example of cooling from white roofs The whitewashed greenhouses of Almeria, Spain have cooled the region by 0.8 degrees Celsius each decade compared to surrounding regions, according to 20 years of weather station data. Source: Google Earth 15
16 White roofs have long been common practice in Santorini, Greece
"Discussion with(Indian(Electricity(Regulators( UC(Berkeley(Faculty(Club( July(10,(2013"
All you could possibly want to know.
I know Dr. Levinson, and his former Employer, Dr. Art Rosenfeld.
So, that's "Dr. Art", the last Graduate Student of the Great Nobel Laureate (1938), Dr. Enrico Fermi. A positively fascinating story:
Solar Reflective Index (SRI)
This single value combines measurements of both the thermal emissivity and the solar reflectance values of a material. The SRI value reflects how well a roof rejects solar heat.
- Solar radiation heats the roof surface.
- Heat Transfer: Some heat that was absorbed by roof is transferred into the building.
- Solar Reflectance: CambridgeTM Cool Colors reflect a percentage of solar radiation.
- Thermal Emissivity: Relative ability of roof surface to emit/release absorbed heat.
- Heat Island Effect: Urban areas are full of concrete and other surfaces which absorb heat from the sun. They also have a lot of energy consumption, which also produces heat. As a result, urban areas are much warmer than the rural areas surrounding them. This affects the temperature of every building in a city.
"Collecting Water From Asphalt Shingles"
I would like to say that GAF is one of the finest manufacturers of roofing materials on earth. I've found them extremely professional. You will never go wrong having the GAF roof of your choice, and they are well represented, both corporate, and in the field.
This information is directly from GAF’s website, and I admire them for telling you the truth.
SUBJECT: Reclaimed Water From An Asphalt Shingle Roof
Q: Can I Reclaim Water (Collect Water For Use) Run-off From My Roof?
A: Yes… But you should only use this water for lawn, shrubbery, and flower irrigation since water run-off from asphalt shingles is not FDA approved for potable water reclamation or agricultural use.
What this means…is that because it is not FDA approved, the reclaimed water is not suitable for:
• drinking
• cooking
• bathing
• watering of fruits or vegetables for human consumption
Q: What Should I Know?
A: Water reclaimed from a shingle roof… may present a variety of hazards that may affect you or your animal’s health. While the water may seem “clean”, consider:
• Asphalt is processed from crude oil and there are chemicals in asphalt that can be hazardous to your health if consumed.
• The granule surface can collect dirt and other air pollutants which vary by location… water running over these granules can collect the dirt and pollutants as it runs off the roof.
• Under the correct conditions, algae, mold, moss, and mildew can grow on the shingle surface. These fungi may be harmful to people and animals when introduced into a drinking water supply.
• Shingles may contain copper oxide, or other algae inhibitors that may harm aquatic life.
Please let me state that GAF is the largest manufacturer of roofing materials on earth. But we never consider the “lowly roof” which I happen to think is the most important component of any structure.
In the summer, it is 95 degrees F. by 9:30 am, and it will rain at exactly 3:30 pm. EVERY DAY. No surprise there.
Tampa is also the lightning capital of the world, so if you visit, don't wear a metal hat, while holding a 3 iron up in the air. Ask Lee Trevino how that worked out for him.
Respect.
Ron Solomon
Public Roofing Oversight
State Certified CCC 1325620
