Iowa State University will install a green roof on a portion of the Memorial Union building on Friday, using $34,000 in student activity fee funding provided by the university’s student government. The project, in which an 855-square-foot mix of groundcover plants will be installed, was the brainchild of ISU senior Miles Thompson of Cedar Rapids, who studies green roof technology. The remainder of the $45,000 project cost was provided by the Memorial Union, said Kerry Dixon-Fox, ISU’s coordinator of sustainable design and construction. Officials say the green technology will reduce energy costs, improve storm water runoff and last twice as long as a conventional roof. The university has three other green roofs on campus, and the new agriculture and bioengineering systems building under construction will also incorporate a green roof.