BROWN
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United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Evaluating Green Roof Potential in the
Jackson Square Redevelopment Project
Sustainability Pilot Background
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EPA's Brownfields Sustainability Pilots provide technical assistance to assist
communities in achieving greener, more sustainable results when redeveloping
brownfields. These pilots also provide models for other communities across
the country.
EPA provided technical assistance to Urban Edge, a nonprofit community
development corporation, for the evaluation of green roof options for the Jackson
Square redevelopment area in Roxbury, Massachusetts. EPA assistance included """
an evaluation of installation and sizing alternatives for a green roof. The goal
of the evaluation was to reduce the street level stormwater infrastructure required to meet city and state stormwater
management guidelines. Stormwater regulations for typical projects of this size require underground stormwater
retention tanks. By installing a green roof with stormwater retention properties, the size of the required retention tanks
can be reduced. Therefore the potential volume and cost of contaminated soil that must be removed is reduced.
Jackson Square Redevelopment Project Area Background
The Jackson Square Redevelopment Project area consists of 15 sites that had a variety of previous uses. Past
uses included residences, a blacksmith shop, gas tank storage, paint shop, auto service station, stable, plumbing
warehouse, automobile dealership, repair shop, public work garage, and a minimum security correctional facility.
Some sites in the redevelopment area were vacant since the mid 1990s and others are still in use today.
Environmental site assessments were conducted by the Boston Department of Neighborhood Development using
EPA funding. These assessments revealed a variety of contamination on the sites within the redevelopment area
including: petroleum contamination, underground storage tanks, lead, arsenic, petroleum hydrocarbons, naphthalene,
volatile organic compounds, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, non-aqueous phase liquid, and heavy metals. Urban
Edge also has an EPA Brownfields Cleanup grant to remediate contamination at one of the properties included in the
Jackson Square redevelopment plan.
Project Highlights
EPA technical assistance to Urban Edge included an evaluation of existing green roof technologies and assistance
in selecting the appropriate technology and vendor to fit program needs. EPA provided Urban Edge with a listing
of green roof products and vendors in the greater Boston area upon which decisions in the design phases of the
construction project could be based. Specific evaluations of green roof technologies that were evaluated as part of
the technical assistance include:
• Environmental Impacts
• Energy Consumption Impacts
• Stormwater Management Impacts
• Regulatory Requirements
• Programmatic and Access Needs
Urban Edge is incorporating the construction of green roofs as part of the Jackson Square redevelopment project in
four phases where appropriate. EPA's technical assistance provided a preliminary evaluation of each building within
the project area and the maximum area possible for green roofs. As a result, the four phases of the redevelopment
project could potentially yield more than 95,000 square feet of green roof area when the project is complete. Urban
Edge is very active in its community through outreach and is fostering public participation in its projects. This includes
Green Housing at Urban Edge (Green HUE), which presents to the community a strategy to implement green
affordable housing development and maintenance.
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Challenges and Lessons Learned
Ensuring Proper Building Infrastructure to
Support Load Capacities
Green roofs may require additional structural
reinforcement. The Jackson Square developers
must ensure that systems are installed with
appropriate rooftop loading capacities, roof slopes
and space availability. The technical assistance
included relevant building characteristics in
recommending the optimal green roof system.
Compliance with State Stormwater
Management Guidelines
New construction over one acre must comply
with state stormwater management guidelines.
These guidelines define the quality and peak flow
discharge for stormwater. Green roofs reduce the
need for stormwater treatment on the ground.
Aerial view of Jackson Square with development potential for green roofs.
Sources for Additional Information
For more information on this project, please see the full Jackson Square technical assistance report at:
http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/sustain_plts/factsheets/roxbury.pdf
Additionally, please see:
www.urbanedge.org/green-housing.php
Regional Contact Information
For more information on the Jackson Square Pilot project, please contact:
Jessica Dominguez
EPA Region 1
617-918-1627
dominguez.jessica@epa.gov
Evaluating Green Roof
Potential in the Jackson Square
Redevelopment Project
EPA-560-F-09-507
October 2009
www, epa.go v/bro wn fields
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