Green Roofs Are Not a New Thing

The original “green roof” technology, thriving in the lush sierras of Tamazula, Mexico, where they get 40 inches of rain per year, mostly during August and September.

The layers in this assembly are predictable: structural sheathing material covered with tar paper, clay tile, dirt, and a few weeds. The dirt and weeds soak up much of the rain. Any water that gets past the soil drains down the tar paper and off the roof.

— Fernando Pagés Ruiz is ProTradeCraft's Latin America Editor. He is currently building a business in Ecuador and a house in Mexico. Formerly, he was a builder in the Great Plains and mountain states. He is author of Building an Affordable House and Affordable Remodel (Taunton Press).