Multiple environmental benefits can be achieved by using a green roof instead of conventional roofs. To better understand the LCA and cost-effectiveness of a green roof, a case study was performed. Two energy models, one with conventional white roof and the other with green roof, were created using eQUEST software to compare the influence of green roof on building energy consumption. The results indicated that the application of a green roof reduced annual space heating and cooling electricity consumption by 9500 kWh (2.2 kWh per square meter). The LCA shows that by using an extensive green roof in lieu of a conventional white roof the LCA measures at the product, construction, and end-of-life stages increased due to the use of additional layers. However, these increases are offset by the reduction of LCA measures at the use stage such that the overall environmental impacts of green roof is less than that of conventional roof. To find out the cost-effectiveness of green roof, a 50-year cost-benefits analysis was conducted. The analysis showed that the net savings of the green roof is negative compared to the white roof it replaced due to its higher initial cost and follow on maintenance cost.

使用绿色屋顶代替传统屋顶可以实现多种环境效益。为了更好地了解LCA和绿色屋顶的成本效益，进行了案例研究。使用eQUEST软件创建了两个能源模型，一个具有传统的白色屋顶，另一个具有绿色的屋顶，以比较绿色屋顶对建筑能耗的影响。结果表明，绿色屋顶的应用每年可减少9500 kWh（每平方米2.2 kWh）的空间供暖和制冷电力消耗。LCA显示，通过使用大量的绿色屋顶代替常规的白色屋顶，由于使用了额外的层，LCA在产品，构造和使用寿命终止阶段的措施有所增加。然而，这些增加被使用阶段LCA措施的减少所抵消，从而使绿色屋顶的总体环境影响小于传统屋顶。为了找出绿色屋顶的成本效益，进行了50年的成本效益分析。分析表明，与绿色屋顶相比，绿色屋顶的净节省额是负的，这是因为其初始成本较高，并且后续的维护成本较高。