Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Cool Roofs Project - Paint it White!

Mayor Bloomberg and former Vice President Al Gore Friday launched a buildings service initiative called "NYC Cool Roofs." One Green Team member will volunteer with the effort on Friday and will be sure to report.

This project aims to mobilize volunteers to coat the rooftops of participating buildings with reflective, white coating to reduce cooling costs, energy usage and greenhouse emissions.
Bloomberg and Gore helped NYC Service volunteers coat the rooftop of the Long Island City YMCA in Queens to jumpstart a pilot program through October 9.

During the pilot, teams of volunteers are working to coat 100,000 square feet of rooftop in Long Island City, a neighborhood that endures higher temperatures than the citywide average due to the number of industrial rooftops in the area.

"It's such a simple concept - anyone who has ever gotten dressed in the summer knows it - light-colored surfaces absorb less heat than darker surfaces do," said Mayor Bloomberg.
"Coating rooftops with reflective, white paint can reduce roof temperatures by as much as 60 degrees and indoor temperatures by 10 to 20 degrees," the mayor said. "That means substantial energy savings for the building owner and a big reduction in energy usage and greenhouse emissions."

Learn More at Environment News Service.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

It has been a year. What was the outcome of this project. Sounds like a great, simple idea.