Preserving Integrity of Site

Green construction practices disturb as little of the natural environment as possible. A green building project should evaluate the site and determine how the building could best blend in without merely "imposing" the building on the site. The LEED™ Rating System for green building includes a section on site selection criteria.

One specific strategy for preserving the integrity of the site is low-impact development that maintains the land's hydrologic functions and reduces stormwater runoff.

Links

Low-Impact Development
Chapter 12 of Stormwater Strategies from the Natural Resources Defense Council describes low-impact development, its principles and practices.

Low-Impact Development Center
A nonprofit organization that focuses on a comprehensive land planning and engineering design approach with a goal of maintaining and enhancing the pre-development hydrologic regime of urban and developing watersheds.

Backyard Wildlife Habitat
This program of the National Wildlife Federation focuses on improving the habitat value of home and school yards, using a certification process.

Landscaping 

Green landscaping is designed for low water and maintenance requirements. Xeriscape™ refers to landscaping concepts that reduce water needs. Natural landscaping is designed with plants that are appropriate for the site’s microclimate and topography. This can mean native plants, but not always. An example of natural landscaping is using drought-tolerant plants in areas that are dry and windy, and using plants appropriate for wet areas in spillways and waterways. It is also important to design landscaping in a manner that prevents water runoff.

Well-designed landscaping also can help reduce heating energy consumption by 30 percent, air-conditioning energy consumption by 75 percent, and water consumption by 80 percent.  According to Xeriscape Colorado!, a good xeriscape can even increase property value by as much as 15%.

Deciduous trees (those whose leaves fall off during winter), for example, can provide shading during the summer without preventing solar gain during the winter. Evergreens make good windbreaks, but may be less appropriate for south-facing locations since they prevent solar gain.

Links

University Extension Services in individual states can often help to identify native plants and sources of native plants for drought-tolerant, climate-adapted, low-intensity landscaping.

Sustainable Urban Landscape Information Series
SULIS, from the University of Minnesota, provides sustainable landscape information to the public and to the horticulture/landscape industry.

GreenScapes and Green Landscaping with Native Plants
The U.S. EPA offers resources, information and links on green and sustainable landscaping and its environmental benefits.

Wild Ones Native Plants, Natural Landscapes
Wild Ones promotes the establishment of native communities around homes and businesses, using ecologically sound practices.

Landscape Water Conservation...Xeriscape
The Texas Agricultural Extension Service offers information on planning landscaping, choosing plants and selecting watering systems that conserve water.

Publications

Energy-Efficient and Environmental Landscaping: Cut Your Utility Bills By up to 30 Percent and Create a Natural, Healthy Yard, by Anne Moffat, Marc Schiler, and the Staff of Green Living. ISBN 0-9638784-0-9.

Describes the basics of environmental landscaping to help you reduce heating and cooling costs, water costs, and yard maintenance while creating a yard that invites wildlife and controls pests without chemicals. Available from: Appropriate Solutions Press, Dover Road Box 39, South Newfane, VT 05351. Phone: (802) 348-7441; e-mail: hipgl@sover.net 

Identifies sustainable landscaping and gardening information sources, products, and materials. Available from: Environmental Resources, Inc., 2041 E. Hollywood Avenue, Salt Lake City, UT 84108-3148. Phone: (801) 485-0280.

Consider each material with respect to its impact on the environment. For example, selecting local materials helps strengthen the local economy, as well as eliminating the need for transporting materials, which in turn reduces pollution, fuel consumption, and other transportation-related environmental impacts.

Some materials have more of an impact on the environment than others. Virgin materials have higher levels of embodied energy (energy required to harvest, manufacture, and transport the materials) than recycled materials. Similarly, highly-processed materials generally have a greater environmental impact that minimally-processed building materials.

It can be difficult to obtain enough information about building materials to conduct accurate life-cycle assessment, but the more you know about the materials you choose, the better you can avoid adverse environmental impacts.

Links

Building for Sustainability Report and Matrix
When the David and Lucile Packard Foundation developed plans to build a new office building in 2001, their design team prepared a report that compared the construction and lifecycle costs of six different project scenarios. The environmental impacts of the scenarios are contrasted in a matrix that may be downloaded from the Foundation's website.

Minnesota Sustainable Design Guide
This online guide is a design tool that can be used to overlay environmental issues on the design, construction and operation of new and renovated facilities.

Life Cycle Assessment
This website discusses the definitions and practice of Life Cycle Assessment, and offers Guidelines for Design for Environment.

Sustainable Products Corporation
In addition to providing links to both general and specific standards for sustainable products, this group offers a tool that provides manufacturers a product LCA, and reports on the Sustainable Products Purchasing Coalition Pilot Program.

Software

BEES 3.0 is Building for Environmental and Economic Sustainability software that allows comparisons of the environmental impacts of an assortment of building materials. This software was developed by NIST, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and may be downloaded free of charge.

Last updated: January 28, 2004

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