Technical review of green roofs in hot arid region: Case of Qatar

Abstract

Greening the city and its buildings is not a new notion, in fact it is an old-traditional system that is re-discovered to improve damaged impact on the urban environment in a smart-sustainable way. Greening has its roots in the natural environment, and it can also be incorporated significantly on the roof within architecture and design. Green roof system is becoming popular. In the last years, the quantity of studies distributed in the scientific writing on this point, including green elements are rapidly expanding as it allows for a healthy-sustainable urban space and improves the overall quality of life. This paper develops a technical review on historical, classifications, and technical aspects of green roof system. The review concludes with a set of design recommendations which would be helpful to architects, planners, and urban designers, to explore and use the most suitable green design possibilities in hot arid region such as Qatar.