The Gathering Place for First Nations and other students at Vancouver Island University is now covered with native grasses and other species.
A crew from Victoria-based Paradise Cityscapes laid a membrane, spread a layer of growing media and planted sedum, fescues and other plants that are well suited to growing conditions on the 3,000-square-foot roof of Shq’apthut: A Gathering Place. Some of the young plants were grown by students in VIU’s Horticultural Technician Foundation Program with others brought in from NATS Nursery, a Lower Mainland firm that specializes in Pacific Northwest Native Plants.
Students who are just completing VIU's one-year horticultural technician program, grew the plant stock throughout their term. They’ve learned about plant selection based on species that can thrive in a five centimetre thick mixture of pumice and compost and survive long spells of hot, dry weather as well as heavy rainfall and cold.
New horticulture students who begin their program in early January will have the opportunity to see the roof mature and learn how to keep it healthy.
“With all the green roofs that are being installed, there’s a need to teach students about their design, benefits and how to maintain them,” said Laura-Jean Kelly, an instructor at VIU’s G.R. Paine Horticulture Centre.
The roof, installed with the help of $25,000 donation from VIU Students’ Union, reflects the university’s commitment to sustainability.
“The green roof is located on a building that is highly visible from the 5th street entrance to the Nanaimo campus and is hoped to further raise awareness of ways that buildings can be designed and landscaped to support a healthy and sustainable environment,” said Craig Hanson, VIU Facilities Planner/Developer.
In addition to improved water retention and energy efficiency, the roof will be used for research into the capacity for green roofs to sequester carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas.
Biology professor David Gaumont-Guay will monitor carbon dioxide levels on the Gathering Place roof and other green roofs including VIU’s new Cowichan campus, the Regional District of Nanaimo’s transit facility and the offices of Island West Coast Development, also in Nanaimo.
It is part of a multi-year research project supported by the Canadian Foundation for Innovation and British Columbia Knowledge Development Fund. Gaumont-Guay’s Biometeorology Research Group uses instruments that measure weather conditions and carbon-exchange levels on each of the four roofs and track changes that occur throughout the seasons.
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