Is your organization too cool for a cool white roof? Probably not, but there’s a pretty good chance such an office amenity is one of the furthest things from your mind.
It’s never too late for a look at the top of your organization’s home base to do the world a little good, though. If management is looking for innovations to bring more sustainability to the organization, a little white paint may go a long way.
A cool roof
A "cool roof" is one that has been designed to reflect more sunlight and absorb less heat than a standard roof. According to the U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Saver program, cool roofs can be made of a highly reflective type of paint, a sheet covering or highly reflective tiles or shingles.
Nearly any type of building can benefit from a cool roof while standard or dark roofs can reach temperatures of 150 F or more in the summer sun. A cool roof under the same conditions could stay more than 50 F cooler and save energy and money by using less air conditioning.
"The ability of cool roofing materials to reflect sunlight and absorb less heat than darker roofs is well known, but the full range of benefits extends much farther than reflectivity," the government points out. According to the Global Cool Cities Alliance, cool roof benefits include:
- Saving energy
- Lowered indoor temps
- Improving conditions for nearby buildings
- Reducing excess urban heat
Likewise, a cool roof can reduce energy bills by decreasing air conditioning needs; improving indoor comfort for spaces that are not air conditioned, such as garages or covered patios; can reduce local air temperatures; and can lower peak electricity demand, which can help prevent power outages.
The White Roof Project, a nonprofit, is an effort to encourage organizations to "go green by painting white." According to the organization, the purpose of the movement is "tangible change" that "facilitates community involvement to help solve big environmental problems, one rooftop, one block, one city at a time."
Eliminating urban heat islands
Cities throughout the world, given the overwhelming number of roofs included, create heat islands that can be more than 20 percent hotter than their suburban counterparts, and as much as 10 percent of electricity demand is caused by the heat island effect. In Los Angeles alone, three power plants are required to do nothing but compensate for the heat island effect.
According to the nonprofit, black roof top temps can reflect up to 85 percent of the sunlight they attract, and they can reduce smog. And, if just 5 percent of all roofs were paint white each year, by 2030, all roofs would be white and eliminate 24 billion metric tons of CO2 — the same amount produced in 2010.
