EVERETT — Modern-Sheds can be customized with a variety of different add-ons, including green roofs or roof-top gardens  that help reduce energy use in the shed.

The Adopt a Stream Foundation installed a green roof on the new gatehouse at the entrance of the Northwest Stream Center in Snohomish County, Wash., earlier this month.

The Gate House, a 10’ by 12’ Modern-Shed, is the latest development at the Northwest Stream Center, which is in the midst of plans to expand the center with a visitors building, 160-foot trout stream exhibit and ½-mile elevated nature trail.

“The Northwest Stream Center Gate House is a great example of low-impact design,” says Adopt A Stream Foundation Director Tom Murdoch.  “It is a pre-fabricated structure made possible thanks to contributions from Modern-Shed and Elsie Sorgenfrei that was installed in two days on concrete piers.”

The stream center’s mission is to teach people how to become stewards of their watershed. To learn more, visit their website here.

While the Northwest Stream Center will not be open on a daily basis until the elevated nature trail is complete in 2014, the public is invited to attend a series of fall Streamkeeper Academy events in the Visitors Building.

The benefits of a green roof include:

In addition to mitigating urban heat islands, the benefits of green roofs include:

• Reduced energy use: Green roofs absorb heat and act as insulators for buildings, reducing energy needed to provide cooling and heating.
• Reduced air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions: By lowering air conditioning demand, green roofs can decrease the production of associated air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. Vegetation can also remove air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions through dry deposition and carbon sequestration and storage.
• Improved human health and comfort: Green roofs, by reducing heat transfer through the building roof, can improve indoor comfort and lower heat stress associated with heat waves.
• Enhanced stormwater management and water quality: Green roofs can reduce and slow stormwater runoff in the urban environment; they also filter pollutants from rainfall.
• Improved quality of life: Green roofs can provide aesthetic value and habitat for many species.

To find a green roof profession, check out this site, which also includes industry news on the technology.