Prospects for Rooftop Farming System Dynamics: An Action to Stimulate Water-Energy-Food Nexus Synergies toward Green Cities of Tomorrow
Cheng C., Aviso K.B., Tan R.R., Aviso K.
Sustainability (MDPI), 13(16):9042
Urban Farm DB summary
A study developing a system-dynamics model of a rooftop farm in Taipei City to analyze the socio-environmental benefits of rooftop agriculture (improved food access, community ties, energy savings, reduced flood risk). It frames rooftop farming as a practical solution for strengthening water-energy-food nexus synergies in greener cities.
Key points
- 1Rooftop farming is a practical solution for smart urban agriculture, offering socio-environmental benefits and short food supply chains, especially in densely populated cities.
- 2A System Dynamics (SD) model developed for a Taipei rooftop farm demonstrated annual yields of sweet potato leaves reaching 9.3 kg/m².
- 3This yield was achieved by utilizing 3.8 ton/m² of harvested rainwater, 2.1 ton/m² of tap water, 2.1 kwh/m² of solar photovoltaic power, and 0.4 kwh/m² of public electricity.
- 4Green resources (rainwater, solar PV) show great potential to significantly reduce the consumption of urban irrigation resources for rooftop farming.
- 5The Water-Energy-Food (WEF) Nexus mechanism at a city scale contributes to urban planning and promotes urban sustainability through rooftop farming.
Abstract and stored text
OpenAlexRooftop farming is a practical solution of smart urban agriculture to furnish diverse socio-environmental benefits and short food supply chains, especially in densely populated cities. This study aims to raise urban food security with less use of public water and energy in food production, through utilizing green water and energy for sustainable management. A system dynamics (SD) model framed across the nexus of climate, water, energy and food (WEF) sectors is developed for a rooftop farm in Taipei City of Taiwan. The urban WEF Nexus is structured to address how local weather affects water and energy utilization to grow vegetables. The SD results showed that the annual yields of sweet potato leaves achieved 9.3 kg/m2, at the cost of 3.8 ton/m2 of harvested rainwater and 2.1 ton/m2 of tap water together with 2.1 kwh/m2 of solar photovoltaic power and 0.4 kwh/m2 of public electricity. This study not only demonstrates that green resources show great potential to make a significant reduction in consuming urban irrigation resources for rooftop farming, but contributes to urban planning through a sustainable in situ WEF Nexus mechanism at a city scale. The WEF Nexus can manifest the rooftop farming promotion as cogent development to facilitate urban sustainability.
Why it matters for urban farming
This paper demonstrates that urban rooftop farms can achieve high productivity (e.g., 9.3 kg/m² of sweet potato leaves annually) while significantly reducing reliance on public water and energy by utilizing rainwater harvesting and solar power. For urban farmers, this means you can grow a substantial amount of food with a smaller environmental footprint, making your farm more sustainable and resilient. It highlights the potential for integrating green technologies to minimize resource consumption, contributing to a greener, more self-sufficient city.