www epa govgreenscapes Green Scapes Multimedia EPA Partnership

www. epa. gov/greenscapes

Green. Scapes • Multi-media EPA Partnership Program that promotes a variety of environmentally beneficial landscaping and land management practices

Green. Scapes Alliance • Partners (companies, government agencies) – Commit to two Green. Scaping activities • Allies (professional organizations, trade associations, research groups, product manufacturers & marketers) – Promote use of Green. Scaping activities

Why Join Green. Scapes? • Program provides state-of-the-art landscaping recommendations – Web-based menu of options & resources > Multi-media … continually updated > Small scale & Large scale • National Recognition Program • Case Study Profiles

What Green. Scapes does • Helps preserve natural resources and prevent waste and pollution by encouraging more holistic decisions regarding waste, water, chemicals, energy, and land use

What Green. Scapes does • Provides cost-efficient and environmentally friendly solutions improving both an organization’s bottom-line and the environment

Big Landscapes… • • Roads & Highways Commercial Buildings Industrial Sites Military Installations Brownfields Colleges & Universities Recreation areas - parks, golf courses, ski resorts, amusement parks, …

Can Generate Millions of Tons of Waste Trees, Shrubs, Brush, Lumber, Asphalt, Concrete, etc. • Hauled away to a landfill • Buried • Burned

And Use Millions of Gallons of • • • Water Pesticides Fertilizers Fuels Oil

Green. Scapes promotes holistic and sustainable decisions – Waste generation & disposal – Use of • Water • Chemicals • Air • Plants • Energy • Land & Wetlands

Focus on the 4 Rs • Reduce • Reuse • Recycle • Rebuy

Reduce • Number One step towards efficient materials use & pollution prevention

Ways to Reduce • Select low maintenance plants • Use plastic lumber instead of pressure-treated wood • Grasscycle • Limit fertilizer and water use

Example in Reduction • Reduce or eliminate plastic silt fencing – Substitute with blankets, berms, and filter-socks made of compost.

Reuse • Key to effective management – Efficient use of valuable resources • Financial • Materials

Ways to Reuse • Chip trees and wood waste into mulch –Saves money in reduced • disposal costs • commercial mulch purchases –Benefits of mulch use • Moisture retention • Weed prevention • Erosion control

Other Ways to Reuse • Return wooden pallets to your supplier whenever possible or disassemble them and use the wood elsewhere or grind them into mulch • Donate healthy plants to community gardens, schools, churches, or other local non-profit organizations when. updating or removing trees & shrubs from landscape • Use alternative sources of irrigation water such as gray water, reclaimed water, and collected rain water.

Recycle • Save money on disposal costs, by recycling waste materials – Might receive a few dollars for valuable recyclables (metal, cardboard, paper, plastics)

Ways to Recycle • Send wood waste & trimmings that cannot be composted on site to a local composting facility • Recycle plastic fencing, barriers, plant & pesticide containers • Collect and recycle used oil & tires from your vehicles and equipment

Rebuy • Puts valuable materials back to work • Re-think your purchasing habits – Look for products that meet your needs but have a better environmental profile than your current product purchases

What Rebuying Means • • Recycled content Biobased products (incl. fuels & lubricants) Renewable energy & products Energy efficient Change your thinking: It’s not waste – it’s a resource!

Rebuying in use • Specify rubberized asphalt (made from recycled tires) for: – – Walking paths Bike paths Cart paths Parking lots

The Economic & Environmental Benefits of Green. Scaping: • Reduced equip. maint. – • Reduced water use • Reduced irrigation costs – water & energy • Reduced plant growth • Reduced plant maintenance • Reduced waste generation • Reduced labor – time & cost (maint. & disposal) • Reduced equipment operating times • • labor & supplies Reduced fuel use Reduced emissions Reduced fertilizer use – material & labor savings Reduced pesticide use – material & labor savings Reduced nonpoint source pollution Reduced exposure to hazardous materials Reduce insurance costs?

Green Buildings and Green. Scapes • Up to 40 points can be achieved in existing LEEDs with regards to sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy & atmosphere, materials & resources, and innovation & design factors that can be achieved through landscaping. Resulting in “Silver” or “Gold” status alone. • These are the very types of site considerations that Green. Scapes promotes

Green. Scapes Efforts in Green Buildings • ASLA is exploring development of an evaluation tool to measure sustainable site design for recreation areas, nature preserves, utility and highway corridors, etc. • Establish a standard for sustainable site design with clearly defined metrics • Identify & recognize sites that meet a defined standard of sustainability • Educate and promote sustainable design

Green. Scapes & Green Buildings • Some of our most sensitive environments are being developed without buildings – Such as hiking trails, boardwalk trails through wetlands, sports field complex • Some projects which have the greatest impact on the environment are not currently eligible to receive LEED certification – Dams, roads, powerline corridors, parks, streetscapes, etc. • Impacts of site development can be much greater than the impacts of the associated building, leading to a false sense of sustainability. – For example a “park & ride” with a stellar building for restrooms and ticket sales but has a 500 car parking lot that is highly lit, with impervious surfaces, built on a filled wetland with a high-maintenance landscape

Why LEEDs? • The USGBC LEED certification process provides a recognized prototype for a sustainable tool and evaluation process. • Green. Scapes is currently working with ASLA and others on the development of a “Site-Only” LEED tool … (LEED – LS)

Some Site-only LEED credits • • Use of indigenous plant species Use of an IPM program Use of organic landscape management practices Protecting, salvaging and reusing onsite plant and other materials • Creating viable fish & wildlife habitat • Restoring natural landscapes

Green. Scapes also Works with • EMS efforts to enhance and amplify green landscaping guidance aspect of that initiative • The Federal Green Highways Partnership Recycling and Reuse Efforts

More Efforts • Green. Scapes technical training sessions at ASLA’s Annual Meeting & EXPO – October 7 -10, 2006 Minneapolis, MN • Green. Scapes for Homeowners – Spring 2006

For more information www. epa. gov/greenscapes