THE LIMITS OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT IN URBAN SOUTH AFRICA: THE CASE OF GREEN ROOFS

Abstract

With the advance of urbanisation many cities are confronted with environmental problems including air pollution, the absence of green spaces and urban heat island effects. The expansion of green infrastructure is viewed as an important aspect of urban sustainability agendas. One dimension of green infrastructure is green roofs. The objective in this article is to examine the development and challenges of green roofs in South Africa, presenting the results of a survey of the suppliers of green roofs. The findings show for South Africa the relative underdevelopment of green roof systems, the geographical unevenness of such developments and the challenges that confront the emergence of green roof systems in the South African context. Key issues relate to current high costs associated with green roof construction, absence of government support in the form of financial incentives, and lack of awareness of the sustainability benefits of green roof systems.