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Rooftops on new buildings built in commercial zones in France must either be partially covered in plants or solar panels, according to a law just approved…

Green roofs help reduce the amount of energy needed to heat a building in winter and cool it in summer. They also retain rainwater, thus helping reduce problems with runoff, while favoring biodiversity and giving birds a place to nest in the urban jungle…

The law was also made less onerous for businesses by requiring only part of the roof to be covered with plants, and giving them the choice of installing solar panels to generate electricity instead.

Green roofs are popular in Germany and Australia, and Canada’s city of Toronto adopted a by-law in 2009 mandating them in industrial and residential buildings.

I’m not confident our current Congress would mandate a roof that was up to standard building codes.

As it is, they can’t wait for a chance to eliminate tax breaks for installing energy-saving or carbon-reducing systems like solar panels.