Description: Effective January 1st, 2017, San Francisco became the first U.S. city to mandate solar and living roofs on most new construction. With the passage of this amendment to California’s 2016 Title 24 Building Efficiency Standards, between 15% and 30% of roof space on most new construction projects will incorporate solar, living roofs, or a combination of both.

In dense, urban cities the rooftops are valuable space that can be used more efficiently to benefit the environment and community. Rooftops are 30% of San Francisco’s land area, and an untapped resource. This ordinance provides flexibility for the building designer, owner, and developer to choose the best combination of solar photovoltaic (PV), solar water heating and living roof systems to maximize benefits based on location and building program.

Goal: California reach code requiring solar and living roofs: solar PV, thermal solar, living and cool roofs