Chicago Opens a Rare 'Green' School

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050906/ap_on_sc/green_school

CHICAGO - Youngsters at Tarkington elementary started their first day of classes Tuesday at a school where flowering plants grow on the roof. It's one of the nation's small but growing number of environmentally friendly schools, a stand-out because it sits in a major city better known for towers of steel and concrete.

Supporters hope Tarkington elementary will bring the idea of environmentally friendly urban buildings into the mainstream.

In contrast to other Chicago buildings, Tarkington has a living, green roof planted atop the gymnasium. It's a garden of short, self-sustaining flowering plants that don't need much water and can withstand Chicago's weather, said project manager Julie Chamlin.

"It looks extraordinarily better than other schools," said 12-year-old Dulce Vega, a seventh-grader excited at the thought of having science classes on the roof.

Much more...

Their mayor pushed an initiative a year or two ago, I believe.

They're a great idea, especially in urban areas: reduced heat island, reduced cooling costs, reduced stormwater surge, reduced storm sewer costs, reduced replacement of roofing membranes....

Being from a small, rural town in Indiana, I didn't know anything about these. But after reading the article, I thought, "What a great idea!" Hopefully this idea will spread.