Runoff and Water Quality in the Aspect of Environmental Impact Assessment of Experimental Area of Green Roofs in Lower Silesia

Grzegorz Pęczkowski, Katarzyna Szawernoga, Tomasz Kowalczyk, Wojciech Orzepowski and Ryszard Pokładek
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Grzegorz Pęczkowski: Institute of Environmental Protection and Management, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Pl. Grunwaldzki 24, 50-363 Wroclaw, Poland
Katarzyna Szawernoga: Institute of Environmental Protection and Management, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Pl. Grunwaldzki 24, 50-363 Wroclaw, Poland
Tomasz Kowalczyk: Institute of Environmental Protection and Management, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Pl. Grunwaldzki 24, 50-363 Wroclaw, Poland
Wojciech Orzepowski: Institute of Environmental Protection and Management, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Pl. Grunwaldzki 24, 50-363 Wroclaw, Poland
Ryszard Pokładek: Institute of Environmental Protection and Management, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Pl. Grunwaldzki 24, 50-363 Wroclaw, Poland

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 11, 1-15

Abstract: Green architecture, including green roofs, can limit the effects of urbanization. Green roofs soften the thermal effect in urban conditions, especially considering the significant increase in the European and global population and that a significant share of the age group, mainly the elderly is exposed to diseases caused by high temperatures. We studied runoff and the quality of water from green roof systems in Lower Silesia, within the area of the Agro and Hydrometeorology Station Wrocław-Swojec, in the years 2012–2016. In the study, two systems with a vegetation layer based on light expanded clay aggregate and perlite were analyzed. The studies were based on the assessment of peak flow reduction, rainwater volume preservation and peak wave reduction. The calculated maximum retention performance indicator, relative to rainfall, for perlite surfaces was up to 65%, and in relation to the control surface up to 49%. In addition, the quality of water from runoff was estimated in the conditions of annual atmospheric deposition, taking into account such indicators as electrolytic conductivity; the content of N, NO 3 , NO 2 , NH 4 , P, PO 4 ; and the content of metals, Cu, Zn, Pb and Cd. The load of total nitrogen exceeded the values of concentration in rainwater and amounted to 7.17 and 13.01 mg∙L −1 for leca and perlite, respectively. In the case of the metal content, significantly higher concentrations of copper and zinc from green surfaces were observed in relation to precipitation. For surfaces with perlite, these were 320 mg∙L −1 and 241 mg∙L −1 , respectively, with rainwater concentrations of 50 and 31 mg∙L −1 .

Keywords: green roofs; integrated environmental assessment; quality of runoff water; performance system (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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