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What kind of maintenance is required for a green roof? <br /> Although green roofs are built to be self-sustaining when installed, watering and <br /> weeding may be required when the roof shows signs of excessive drought and <br /> infestation. Both of these can be limited, however, with proper planning and cooperative <br /> weather. Plenty of ground cover ensures that weeds cannot grow and Minnesota's <br /> climate already lends itself to a somewhat reliable watering schedule. LiveRoof® plants <br /> come pre-grown and provides maximum ground coverage, limiting weed growth. A <br /> benefit of using native plants is how they're used to fluctuations in a temperate climate, <br /> meaning they'd have less trouble coping with Minnesota precipitation rates. <br /> Other maintenance would include checking on the membranes to ensure there is <br /> no water leakage and that the substrate is contained. Replanting is limited because the <br /> plants are all perennial, but death or disease could call for new plants. Any leaves that <br /> accumulate during the fall should be raked off before winter, as to prevent plant <br /> smothering. No winter maintenance is required, as the plants are perennial and can <br /> withstand winter <br /> One common mistake for certain roofs is not having a regular maintenance plan <br /> in place, resulting in the roof not being checked for months and letting any potential <br /> minor issue grow exponentially. A simple weekly/monthly check on the roof would be <br /> ideal, which would possibly be mundane due to the roof being visited for treatment-plant <br /> purposes. <br /> Can wastewater from the Elk River wastewater treatment plant be used to water <br /> the green roof? <br /> According to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) water used for the <br /> irrigation of residential landscape, parks, playgrounds, school yards or golf courses <br /> cannot exceed 2.2 MPN/100 ml of Total Coliform and a 2 NTU daily average, with a <br /> maximum turbidity of 10 NTU daily. This would require extensive filtration and <br /> disinfection, something the Elk River plant is not currently equipped to do.4 The amount <br /> of water that is needed to water the area the green roof will occupy would be small, <br /> especially when considering annual rainfall and plants that are already adapted to <br /> Minnesota's climate, so the additional energy, labor and money that would be needed to <br /> treat the water to this extent would not be worthwhile. <br /> 12 <br />