Greenery-Covered Tall Buildings: A Review

Abstract

The greenery-covered tall building, an innovative building typology that substantially integrates vegetation into the design, promises to transform urban landscapes into more sustainable and livable spaces. This paper explores the concept of greenery-covered tall buildings. It achieves its objectives by offering an overall introduction to this building typology, mapping out novel projects to identify innovative ideas and design strategies, and reviewing the social, environmental, and economic benefits of integrating greenery into tall buildings. Examining prominent implementations distinguishes purposeful greenery integration from “afterthought” additions, providing insights for architects, developers, scholars, and the public. Additionally, the paper discusses the downsides and challenges of integrating trees and plants into tall buildings, including construction costs, maintenance considerations, and adherence to building and fire codes, and proposes remedies. This research fosters a deeper understanding of their transformative potential in creating greener, more resilient, and socially beneficial urban environments by contributing to the architectural discourse on this emerging building typology.

Green Roofs: Nature-Based Solution or Forced Substitute for Biologically Active Areas? A Case Study of Lublin City, Poland

“…Green roofs can be a significant element of sustainable urban development, providing healthy spaces for residents and mitigating adverse effects of climate change [63,64]. However, it turns out that green roofs can also serve as a form of greenwashing [46,[71][72][73][74]. In the Polish context, greenwashing can be defined as a strategy employed by investors who replace biologically active areas present on native soil before the development of an investment with green roofs using sedum mats, the thickness of which is minimal for plant growth, including, typically, sedums.…”

Contemporary Innovations and Sustainable Practices in the Application of Clay Materials within Architectural Design and Construction Methodologies

“…Moreover, this discourse expands to include the significant influence of esthetic beauty on the overall welfare of society, placing it as a crucial factor for promoting exploration, acquisition of information, education, and curiosity. The deliberate choice of materials that align with the functional nature of buildings is believed to significantly enhance structures' esthetic appeal and long-term viability, thus contributing to their overall beauty and sustainability [34]. These buildings are portrayed as essential elements of the city, representing the essence of civilization and highlighting the direct connection between establishing cultural and educational spaces and the sustainable growth of metropolitan areas.…”

Environmentally Friendly Smart Construction—Review of Recent Developments and Opportunities

“…By acting as a natural insulator, green façades reduce the heating and cooling loads. Beyond their functional benefits, the green façades contribute to biophilic design philosophy of connecting people with nature and enhance the visual appeal of buildings and urban landscapes [70,[95][96][97].…”

“…The main potential drawbacks of green façades include an increase in relative humidity [101], elevated fire risks, an increase in maintenance costs and a need of plant healthcare and insect control [96]. However, it is not possible to reliably predict the energy saving performance of naturebased systems due to variability of outdoor conditions and the fact that plants are alive; the green façades can be used in new buildings to enhance energy efficiency and applied to existing buildings as a way of energy retrofit.…”