Update on green roof collapse in Hong Kong

The rooftop collapse, apparently from the application of a green roof which much heavier than the roof could hold, has struck a nerve throughout Hong Kong. Anyone involved with the project, even at arms length, is looking to distance themselves and the government has taken the event very seriously.
The university is removing several other green roofs, built on tin roofs, as a precautionary measures.

Green roof collapse at Hong Kong City University

Luckily only two people were hurt. Preliminary reports indicate the weight of the green roof was 5 times the structural limit!

Rooftop farming in India

Three recent, fascinating rooftop farming stories from India. The first features an ordinary farmer who decided to do things a little differently by growing food on his rooftop, even rice a phenomenon I profiled last year.
The second is a HUGE, 5000 square foot rooftop in Olkata, India, with over 15 different vegetables (and several chili peppers) being organically grown. And the third documents how some Indian cities are offering subsidies for rooftop farming kits.

-This has to be one of the most neutral and even handed urban agriculture blurbs I've ever seen! Granted, when you're writing about Hong Kong and you live in Hong Kong, diplomacy is a must. But it highlights the complexities of growing food in Hong Kong and starkly illustrates that when we can finally figure out how to properly value cultural ties to land and the benefits of people having accessing to nature, the equation for how we use land will totally shift.

-A tip of the hat to Hilltop Alliance in Pittsburgh, who want to build 120 rental townhouse and a 20 acre urban farm and incubator. Sacramento seems to be a step closer to offering the same idea, but on a smaller scale, with a school thrown in for good measure!

-Lastly to round things out, is a cool article about green roofs popping up in recent films. Perhaps I should do a post about films in older movies, starting with the Wizard of Oz and working backwards.
Farming still has a part to play in Hong Kong

Fearless forecast for 2015!

A brand new year is upon us and here's what I think is on the horizon!

1) I think aquaponics will cool down a bit. Why's that? There has been so much activity, so many huge projects have been announced, that people will just get down to business and start doing the work.

2) With the rise of the sharing economy and urban agriculture, you'll see more policy changes to allow urban and maybe even some suburban agriculture and more sharing between municipalities on how to get it done.

3) The second half of last year it didn't see that many big urban agriculture projects were coming down the pike. So I think that means early this year we'll some impressive stuff is in the works.

4) Has anyone noticed that permaculture was all the rage a couple of years ago and now, very little is said about it? I think the permaculture is so huge and all-encompassing, practioners and participants started talking about and focusing on the smaller tenants.

5) Singapore will continue to lead the charge in vertical gardening experimentation and commercialization.

6) With great swaths of the USA under some level of drought pressure, rainwater harvesting (especially grey water) will enjoy a tremendous year. Maybe there will even be a huge project which focuses on these new technologies!
Combining 5 and 6 a bit, there are those who have said urban agriculture cannot supply most of our food. I'm not sure if they are right, but what happens if the California drought continues? Will people have to start growing more food at home? Or will produce begin to trickle in from other countries? Like Singapore?

Developer sued by community garden

This hasn't happened many times, as far as I can remember, but a community garden has filed suit against a New York developer. The community group says the owner effectively abandoned the site, as it has been untouched (except for the mounds of garbage) for over 30 years. What do you think, do they have a case?

-To solve America's farming crisis Future Farmers of America is turning to students in urban areas to fill the rural void. It would be nice if the students had options in their home city as well.

-In the Philippines a city official has his own ideas how to boost agricultural production, throughout the country. He introduced a bill which would institutionalize, strengthen, and promote urban agriculture and vertical farming in order to meet predesignated targets. That would mean the creation of a brand new, revolutionary industry.

-Every week I see more stories about urban agriculture in Hong Kong. It seems a true movement is underway, how envious am I that urban agriculturist can grow mangos, bananas, papayas and lychees!

-Add the How-to-Guide for Aspiring Urban Micro-Agricultural Entrepreneurs (created Sustainable Urban Development for residents of West Philadelphia) to your list of valuable resources on how to make a living in urban agriculture. 

New green roof research and support of green infrastructure

In the green roof world the last two weeks have been heavy on research and extolling the benefits of green infrastructure.

First the research. One of the first studies on the effect of green roofs on residential neighborhoods in subtropical or tropical environments. And the second one details that what was believed to be anecdotal, that building owners prefer buildings with vegetation, is now scientific fact.

And now the green infrastructure articles...well, not much more to say than it is confirmed, green infrastructure is absolutely necessary for smart communities of the future.

Urban agriculture + green infrastructure = a new term...Edible Infrastructure!

The urban agriculture movement has taken a strong hold in Hong Kong, so much so we have globe trotting videographers stopping in to check out what's going on.


A Tale of Two Rooftops from The Perennial Plate on Vimeo.


California's first public orchard opened last week in Los Angeles. Fallen Fruit was heavily involved in bringing the project together. The article lists New York, Boston and Madrid as other cities experimenting with edible landscaping. Don't forget Seattle (where they call it a "public food forest"), Toronto and London!!!

Hmm...I think I am ready to coin a new term. How about Edible Infrastructure or Edible Architecture to describe using edible plants specifically to meet all of your green infrastructure needs?

Despite what the creative grant writers of the Los Angeles public orchard say, I am not sure how the orchard is edible art...but it is definitely a place ripe for an ecopsychological experiment. Do public orchards or fruit trees in general make people feel differently about their municipality and life?

Sedums not the best green roof plant?

This research is sure to cause a stir. Sedum species plants have long been a staple of green roofs and sometimes green walls as well. Researchers in the UK now argue that the best all-around performance, including the effects of water ability on the plants and their ability to reduce air temperatures, should be major factors, not just survivability in minimal amounts of medium.

-Looks like Detroit may yet get its zoning ordinance allowing large-scale urban agriculture within city limits. However something tells me this isn't all sewn up just yet.

-Interested in a web application which helps make growing food easier? Then support the Agrisaurus campaign on Kickstarter.

-Dodgy veggies from mainland China have inspired a wave of Hong Kong residents to grow their food wherever they can, especially on rooftops. Two quick nuggets: Hong Kong imports about 90% of their food and they have gone from 0 to 100 organic farms in just 7 years!

A few (urban agriculture) things

Every once in a while I like to do a roundup of the stories that might have fallen between the cracks.

-Lending further credence to the importance of greening the environment, especially through edible means, the Atlantic published an article about the power of greening vacant lots in Philadelphia and a recent report details the restorative effect of urban forests.

-Milwaukee's mayor wants to win the 2012 Mayor's Challenge and he's hoping urban agriculture is the key. Contact the mayor's office with any specific ideas.

-Check out the urban farming being done in Hong Kong (!) and the ongoing urban farming conversation in the Middle  East and North Africa.

-Baltimore's urban agriculture law project, designed to provide legal advice to urban farms and gardens, is off to a flying start and is now a part of a larger community law project expanding its reach.

Growth is a ponzi scheme?

Wow, I've got a ton to comment on starting with an article from the New Urban Network. I've never heard
growth referred to as a ponzi scheme, but the more numbers he crunches...the more ponzi like it seems. If our government officials are aware of this and haven't sought to remedy the problem (more taxes or doing things VERY differently), I don't know what to say. If they are not aware of the facts, that is probably just as bad.

-On the positive side, there are a couple of great stories about urban agriculture in
Hong Kong and, closer to home Philadelphia, where refugees are planting crops from back home.

-A little further south, if you're in DC "Wildman" Steve Brillis in town to drop some foraging knowledge.

-More urban agriculture news. There are rooftop garden classes in
New York City and Toronto this week. Speaking of Toronto, it looks like a buy local food bill is in trouble as council is under pressure to cut costs and go with the cheapest produce.

-On the climate change front, the Guardian has a great article about how El Paso, Texas, is beating the worst drought in a generation. Hopefully others in Texas and abroad are paying attention to their conservation efforts and start listening to Paul Epstein as well. Who's Paul Epstein? Glad you asked.

Hong Kong prison gets green roof

More and more it seems there are green projects which are laudable, but become lightning rods. Case in point, a green roof on a Hong Kong prison. This should be an absolutely fantastic thing...something you could never see in the USA. However, the wealth disparity and presence of "cage homes" in Hong Kong is unfathomable. Comments?

-North Vancouver's mayor appears to be a permablitz fan, food not lawns he cries! BC is also the home of a burgeoning movement to open a local food technology centre to help bring local products to market.

-Is Northeast Ohio in line to get their own Food Authority? Sustain-Lane ranks Cleveland as the second-best local food city in the USA! That, I did not.

-If you're looking for green roof information specific to the American Semi-Arid and Arid West, you're in luck!

-To wrap things up, school is in session. Today's topicagrarian urbanism.