Comments on: Towards a greener London – with help from sheep

By: Rajan Mistry

Rajan Mistry — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 08:48:04 +0000

OMG!!! Imagine the possibilities of a city with a high-limit…even if it’s 300 feet, to be interconnected via their greenroofs with a massive-scale, city-wide livestock space. Goats and sheep, pigs and cows, all happily living together, unaware of the city far below!

Why only one roof, when the roof can indeed be a secondary, or tertiary layer of our urban fabric? I think it would be very interesting to have an area of the city with rabbits and foxes.

Oh! How about a rooftop zoo?!?! Okay, that’s ridiculous. Love elephants and chimpanzees though…

By: Tom Turner

Tom Turner — Sat, 01 May 2010 06:38:50 +0000

Thank you for the ideas. I think it would be best to ask Andy Goldsworthy to design some sheep folds. As an artist, he has received far too little public recognition. The elitism of the art establishment has led it to believe that because Goldsworthy's work is popular it can't possibly be 'art' - as it does for Jack Vettriano, a popular Scots artist. Goldsworthy made the elementary error of not putting any sex or excrement into his work. Vettriano uses erotic themes but also neglects the need for to shock. I wonder if breeding sheep with copious droppings might confer establishment recognition on Andy Goldsworthy?

By: Christine

Christine — Sat, 01 May 2010 05:50:57 +0000

The enclosure will need to be very well designed to prevent the loss of baa lambs.
There is a choice of 1) archaic. Also keeps sheep dry… [ http://www.cambourneallin.org/stepping/archWkshp.htm ] 2) ancient[ http://www.flickr.com/photos/8915705@N03/2878713609/ ] 3) traditional [ http://www.flickr.com/photos/30591976@N05/3037772555/ ] or 4) Barbed wire…Ouch! [ http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/391537 ] and 5) Tom’s strained stainless steel wires.

By: Kat

Kat — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 10:36:18 +0000

How fantastic although I dread to think what would happen if one bar lamb jumped the bar!

By: Tom Turner

Tom Turner — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 05:17:17 +0000

Thank you for the research. I have often watched sheep on sea cliffs and believe you are right about their good sense and freedom from vertigo. But I have also seen some casualties and it would be best to put strained steel wires round the chosen buildings.

By: christine

christine — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 06:03:20 +0000

Tom I am very taken by your sheep on the roof proposal. So I did a little pictorial research to see if the sheep would have the spatial awareness not to fall off the edge of the buildings. [As agriculture is not my area of expertise!]

The evidence so far is… maybe… [ http://www.flickr.com/photos/edboyz/195876121/ ] and [ http://zlatkovsky.blogspot.com/2007/03/harlaxton-adventures-journey-to-poetic.html ]

By: Tom Turner

Tom Turner — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 04:50:17 +0000

I am convinced that the greatest Square Mile of Wealth Generation in Europe could afford to spend more of OUR hard-earned cash on green roofs. Allen and Overy have set a good example, though perhaps thinking more about the welfare of their staff than the sustainability of the City. And if there any Icelandic banks left with branches in London then I strongly recommend the Icelandic Green Roof Tradition as an approach to restoring their moral reputation. They could run a marketing campaingn Put Your Money in the Greener Bank.

By: Peter

Peter — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 03:58:00 +0000

Of course I laughed when seeing that image, but it is the radical (sometimes ridiculous) images like this that get people’s attention on green issues. Sheep on a roof catch the eye, but then ideas of green roofs come to play immediately afterwards, followed by the specifics of dealing with rainwater, all the way down to more efficient ways of constructing simple walls. From baaas to the basics!