WE Credit 3

Water efficiency

Water-efficient landscaping

PROPOSED SOPREMA SOLUTION:

• SOPRANATURE Green roof systems: With SOPRANATURE, it is therefore possible to make direct use of rainwater (considered grey water) for irrigation of vegetation, which reduces the use of potable water.

INTENT:

Limit or eliminate the use of potable water or other natural surface or subsurface resources available on or near the project site for landscape irrigation.

Reduce potable water or other natural surface or subsurface resource consumption for irrigation compared with conventional means of irrigation. If the building does not have separate water metering for irrigation systems, the water-use reduction achievements can be demonstrated through calculations.

The minimum water savings percentage for each point threshold is as follows:

For buildings without vegetation or other ecologically appropriate features on the grounds, points can be earned by reducing the use of potable water for watering any roof and/or courtyard garden space or outdoor planters, provided the planters and/or garden space cover at least 5% of the building site area (including building footprint, hardscape area, parking footprint, etc). If the planters and/or garden space cover less than 5% of the building site area, the project is ineligible for this credit.

Canada's National Research Council has conducted a comparison test demonstrating that green roofs can reduce water runoff by as much as 54% and delay its transition into the municipal stormwater system by two to four hours.

Moreover, water runoff can be further reduced by adding specific plants such as the ones listed in the table below, which are very resistant to dryness and extreme temperatures.

* Always take the plant hardiness zone into account before planting.