Eco News

Building owners from New York who install green roofs on at least 50% of the roof space available may apply for property tax exemption for one year up to 100,000 dollars, reported the Authority for Infrastructure and Water (SWIM).

Under a new law of New York state, the loan will be equal to 4.5 U.S. dollars per one square meter area of the roof which is covered with vegetation, or approximately 25% of the material costs, and installation of green area.

Owners of buildings can apply for taxes exemption since January 1, 2009, during the pilot programme which will be completed in 15 March 2013.

Each 1000 square meters of green, for example, can capture between 20,000 litres and 45,000 litres of water during each storm, and the evaporation can produce the equivalent of between 1000 and 2000 tons of air conditioning, enough to cooled over 8,000 square meters of city.

The green roofs are increasingly popular in other parts of the world. Green roofs industry in Germany, for example, the value reached 77 million U.S. dollars annually, are shown in a CNN report. Green roofs have already become targets of companies and organizations, from banks to libraries from worldwide.