Gazette-Times reporter

Visitors to the Oak Creek Center for Urban Horticulture on Wednesday climbed a staircase to a platform about eight feet off the ground, where they were level with 25 test plots.

Those Oregon State University garden beds, perched on stilts, now are home to succulents and grasses planted in a pumice-laden mix. If research is successful, similar plants may have homes much higher, atop houses or even skyscrapers.

Green roofs, or eco roofs, can mitigate storm water run-off, reduce surrounding air temperature, provide habitat, serve as gardens, and keep houses cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter, said Erin Shroll, lead researcher on the project.

"I would imagine on a residential building, it would make a big difference in energy savings," she added.

And of course, there are aesthetic benefits, too.

The industry, however, is extremely young, and there are several debates about the best practices, and thus, several areas for research.

But also because the field is so young, green roofs are expensive n at least $15 to $20 per square foot, Shroll said.

"When we looked into doing one for someone, they never called back because of the price," said Jessica Boyd, customer service and safety coordinator for Maier Roofing of Albany. The company advertises that it builds green roofs, but hasn't done one yet.

Boyd was one of 25 people on a tour of the facility, and she was confident green roofs would become popular.

"I think there's a big market for it, especially with my generation," the 27-year-old said.

Sarah Marshall, 25, an OSU graduate student in water resources engineering, thought it was about time the United States caught up to other countries such as Germany, which have been doing green roofs for years.

Because of denser population, America's East Coast is further along than the West in eco roofs, Shroll said.

Portland has 80 green roofs, however, including the 15-story Portland Building, which Shroll is conducting research atop. The city is seen as a leader for its eco roof incentives, such as tax breaks. The city of Corvallis currently has no such incentives, she said. Neither Corvallis nor Albany has a green roof so far.

Since the West Coast habitat is different, green roofs pose different challenges. In the Northwest, some sort of irrigation may be needed to water plants during the dry summer months, or people may develop roofs that go dormant during the hot weather.

Some of the plots at Oak Creek are irrigated, while others aren't. The project started in 2006, and the greenery was planted in June.

"It will be really interesting to see what's going on at the same time next year," Shroll said.

Kyle Odegard can be contacted at kyle.odegard@lee.net or 758-9523.