An Evaluation of Vegetated Roofing Technology: Application at Air Force Plant Four, Building 15

Abstract : The United States Air Force maintains thousands of facilities around the world. Many of these facilities have asphalt built up roofs or some other less than sustainable roofing system. In an effort to find roofing systems suitable for Air Force facilities that are both economically and environmentally friendly, this thesis investigated vegetated roofing as a possible alternative to conventional roofing systems. While vegetated roofs are a relatively new roofing system, they exhibit performance qualities that seem to be in line with Air Force needs. An investigation into the feasibility of vegetated roofing technology revealed that this roofing system has many positive economic and environmental characteristics that could benefit the United States Air Force and the Department of Defense. The potential use of this technology was researched specifically for application to building 15 at Air Force Plant 4 (AFP4) in Ft. Worth Texas. A combination of case studies, site visits, and a life cycle economic evaluation was used to compare vegetated roofing with conventional asphalt built up roofing that is typically used at AFP4. The research revealed multiple environmental benefits and few disadvantages. The life cycle costs combined with the environmental benefits of vegetated roofing show that this roofing system is indeed a feasible alternative for building 15.