Design
Patterns and Recommendations
 15.
Landscaping
– Capturing the rain
The
best opportunities to improve the sustainability of landscaping lie in reducing the amount
of water consumed in routine maintenance and reducing the runoff caused by storm events. Landscaping also has the potential to reduce
cooling costs, both by providing shade for individual dwellings and, on the community
scale, helping to offset the urban heat island effect.
There are wide variations in the landscaping choices appropriate for different
climates and settings. Generally, however,
selecting native plants helps to minimize the water, fertilizers, pesticides, and
maintenance time that landscaping requires.
In some parts of the country, stormwater control is being mandated as a
means of protecting surface water quality. In
other areas, alternative stormwater management may be a new idea. In either case, exemplary projects have
demonstrated that controlling runoff and enhancing stormwater infiltration are
cost-effective alternatives to installing conventional storm sewers and water-treatment
facilities.
Recommendations:
§
Reduce paved areas by narrowing street widths in developments and driveway
widths for individual lots.
§
Choose porous paving materials for parking, walkway, and driveway areas.
§
Control
stormwater runoff by incorporating capture swales in developments and
planting vegetative cover on lots and in open spaces.
§
Select native plants for site landscaping.
§
Choose recycled materials for outdoor furniture and decks.
§
Avoid CCA-treated lumber, particularly in applications where
leaching could affect surface or groundwater.
Reference:
§
Stormwater Management Manual for Western Washington
§
Sustainable Urban Landscape Information Series
§
Green
Landscaping,
US EPA Mid-Atlantic Region
§
Center for Watershed Protection
§
Stormwater
Manager's Resource Center
§
PATH Technology Review for Sitework
§
Xeriscape
Demonstration Garden, Colorado Springs Utilities
§
Xeriscape™: A Guide to Developing a Water-Wise
Landscape, University
of Georgia
Applied in Case
Studies:
§ Casa Verde Builders
§ Casas de Don Juan
§
Home
Town – Neighborhood Development
§ O’Brien – Cunningham Home
Additional Examples:
§ Colorado
Court
§ Florida
House Learning Center
§ Highlands' Garden Village
§ Hopelink
Place
§ Utah
House
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