Telangana's Cool Roof Policy

Context: Telangana government has recently announced a “Cool Roof Policy” for buildings, to make them heat resilient, besides reducing the energy consumption.

About Cool Roof Policy

The Telangana government has announced a ‘cool roof’ Policy, to make them thermally comfortable and heat resilient, besides reducing the energy consumption.
Cool Roof
- A cool roof is designed to reflect more sunlight than a conventional roof, absorbing less solar energy.
- They have high “thermal emittance”—the ability to shed heat by giving off “thermal infrared” radiation.
Applicability
- Independent residential and commercial buildings, besides apartments.
- Mandatory for all government, non-residential and commercial buildings irrespective of the size of the area built.
Provisions under Policy
- Materials for covering roof:
  - Roofs can be coated with material or paint having high reflectivity.
  - Prefabricated materials such as poly-vinyl chloride (PVC) membranes or bitumen-based sheeting can be used to cover an existing roof in order to increase the roof surface’s solar reflectance and thermal emittance.
  - Application of high albedo, ceramic mosaic tiles or shingles on top of an existing roof or to a new roof.
- Occupancy certificates are issued only after the builder complies with the policy guidelines.
- State government would also offer a special training programme for builders and all those involved in the construction industry about cool roof products and their benefits.
Expected Impacts
- Policy will go a long way in reducing the impact of heat in regions like Telangana, which record high temperatures during the summer.
- The cool-roof technology will reduce the energy consumption in the form of air-conditioners and fans to a large extent, thereby controlling the carbon-dioxide emissions.
- Decreasing roof temperature may extend roof service life.
- Help offset global warming by reflecting more sunlight to outer space.
- Reduced “urban heat island” effects. A cool roof reflects more heat, and lowers the ambient temperature of the area.
- Cool roofs decrease urban air temperatures and thus slow the formation of ground level ozone, thereby further reducing smog.