HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.R. NO.

229

TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2008

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

HOUSE RESOLUTION

 

 

REQUESTING THE University of Hawaii at Manoa Green Roof Feasibility Team to recommend incentives that may be eSTABLISHEd by the State to encourage green roofing.

 

 

 


     WHEREAS, expanding growth is contributing to the loss of open spaces and natural habitats in suburban and urban areas of the State; and

 

     WHEREAS, municipalities across the country and worldwide have seen the significant economic, cultural, and ecological benefits from green roof construction; and

 

     WHEREAS, examples of green roofing already exist in Honolulu, including the Hawaii State Capitol Building and the Kalanimoku Building, where the roof over a large area of the parking garage is covered with fields of open grass, flowers, and shrubs; and

 

     WHEREAS, local efforts to develop and encourage the use of green roof technology should be built upon the existing research of the University of Hawaii Botany Department, the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, and the City and County of Honolulu's efforts to encourage its use; and

 

     WHEREAS, research has shown green roofing to have many public benefits, including decreasing the urban heat index, providing spaces for endemic plants to grow in areas that otherwise lack biodiversity, improved rain water management, improved air quality, and increased green space;

 

     WHEREAS, green roofing also has many benefits that accrue directly to the property owner, including reducing energy consumption, extending roof life, increasing the overall property value for the property owner, and increasing property values for surrounding property owners, especially in urban areas, by creating a more aesthetic view plane;

 

     WHEREAS, Senate Resolution No. 86 (Regular Session of 2006), requested the University of Hawaii, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, to study voluntary rooftop landscaping and agriculture in urban districts; and

 

     WHEREAS, the resulting report, entitled "Feasibility of Green Roofs in Hawaii", indicated that seventy-seven per cent of surveyed property owners were supporting or very supportive of the government promoting the use and installation of green roof systems; and

 

     WHEREAS, the report also recommended an increase in the availability of public educational information on the benefits of green roofs; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-fourth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2008, that the University of Hawaii at Manoa Green Roof Feasibility Team is requested recommend incentives that may be adopted specifically by the State to encourage green roofing; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the University of Hawaii at Manoa Green Roof Feasibility Team, in preparing its recommendations, is encouraged to collaborate with the University of Hawaii School of Architecture, Landscape Industries Council of Hawaii, the Hawaii chapter of the American Planning Association, the Hawaii chapter of the Architecture Institute of America, the Urban Land Institute, the Hawaii chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects, and the Building Industry Association of Hawaii; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the University of Hawaii at Manoa Green Roof Feasibility Team is requested to submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2009; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the President of the University of Hawaii at Manoa, the chairperson of the Green Roof Feasibility Team, the Dean of the University of Hawaii School of Architecture, who in turn is requested to transmit copies to the Executive Directors of the Landscape Industries Council of Hawaii, the Hawaii chapter of the American Planning Association, the Hawaii chapter of the Architecture Institute of America, the Urban Land Institute, the Hawaii chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects, and the Building Industry Association of Hawaii.

 

 

 

 

OFFERED BY:

_____________________________

 

 

Report Title: 

Green Roof; Feasibility Study