9th May

Back to the Shanghai World Expo today. First stop the ZED factory. BedZED has now reached China (see photo). This example at the Expo is similar in look, with perhaps more stainless steel than Beddington, but nevertheless a move in the right direction. The green roof element (which is a sedum mat in Beddington) is constructed from modular steel trays in this Shanghai example. The emphasis is clearly on adornment rather than functionality. Rainwater was flowing underneath the planted trays (which have tell-take irrigation lines) so not much was being achieved in terms of sustainable drainage.

 

I had wanted to visit the green roof on the Saudi pavilion the other day but the wait is more than 3 hours to enter. Jeff Sorrill (of the Sheffield Green Roof Centre) and I noticed a VIP entrance. We had come all the way from the UK to see the roof, we explained to the Saudi officials. The roof is not open to the public they explained (it still needs to some safety features to be added) however they kindly allowed us to have a look. Great idea to have dates palms and a Bedouin tent pitched on a lawn, but the shock was that the palms are plastic! Then at the New Zealand pavilion, another shock. The lush planting is...plastic. Very realistic but plastic. At least the trees on the beautiful Ningbo pavilion roof were real but alas this roof was closed as well.