Nevada Landscape Contractors Association 2012

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1 Nevada Landscape Contractors Association 2012 BUILDING YOUR BUSINESS WITH GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE AND SUSTAINABLE LANDSCAPES LANDSCAPES

2 What is green infrastructure? infrastructure?

3 An underlying base or foundation especially for an organization or system especially for an organization system

4 Strategy: Having a goal and a way to get there. Planning. Structure: How well the company is positioned to meet the goal. What skills are needed? Process: Does your work add perceived value? How do you cultivate an image? Rewards: Engage and reward employees. Empower them to make decisions and interact as professionals with clients and suppliers. People: Choose the right people with the right skills. Do employees provide the skills necessary to meet your goals? Can they work together as a team to reach the goals outlined in the company s strategy?

5 Strategy: Having a goal and a way to get there. Planning.

6 Strategy: Having a goal and a way to get there. Planning. Structure: How well the company is positioned to meet the goal. What skills are needed?

7 Strategy: Having a goal and a way to get there. Planning. Structure: How well the company is positioned to meet the goal. What skills are needed? Process: Does your work add perceived value? How do you cultivate an image?

8 Strategy: Having a goal and a way to get there. Planning. Structure: How well the company is positioned to meet the goal. What skills are needed? Process: Does your work add perceived value? How do you cultivate an image? Rewards: Engage and reward employees. Empower them to make decisions and interact as professionals with clients and suppliers.

9 Strategy: Having a goal and a way to get there. Planning. Structure: How well the company is positioned to meet the goal. What skills are needed? Process: Does your work add perceived value? How do you cultivate an image? Rewards: Engage and reward employees. Empower them to make decisions and interact as professionals with clients and suppliers. People: Choose the right people with the right skills. Do employees provide the skills necessary to meet your goals? Can they work together as a team to reach goals outlined in the company s strategy?

10 Sustainable Businesses

11 What are sustainable practices? are

12 Sustainability "The Commission defined sustainable development as meeting the needs and aspirations of present generations without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. It requires political reform, access to knowledge and resources, and a more just and equitable distribution of wealth within and between nations..." Brundtland, G.H. (1989). Protecting the Global Commons Earth Ethics, Fall, 12.

13 A sustainable world is one in which human needs are met equitably without harm to the environment, and without sacrificing the ability of future generations to meet their needs. Meeting this formidable challenge requires a substantial increase in our understanding of the integrated system of society, the natural world, and the alterations humans bring to Earth. National Science Foundation, 2011

14 Guiding Principles of a Sustainable Site Do no harm Make no changes to the site that will degrade the surrounding environment. environment Promote regeneration of ecosystem services. Precautionary principle Be cautious in making decisions that could create risk to human and create risk to and environmental health. Design with nature and culture Create and implement designs that are responsive to economic, environmental, and cultural conditions with respect to the local, regional, and global context. Use a decision making hierarchy of preservation, conservation, and regeneration Maximize the benefits of ecosystem services. Provide regenerative systems as intergenerational equity Provide future generations with a a sustainable environment. Support a living process Continuously re evaluate assumptions and values and adapt to demographic and environmental change. Use a systems thinking approach Understand the relationships in an ecosystem. Use a collaborative and ethical approach Encourage direct and open d communication. Maintain integrity in leadership and research Implement transparent and participatory leadership, develop develop research with technical rigor, and communicate new findings in a clear, consistent, and timely manner. Foster environmental stewardship Foster an understanding that responsible management of healthy ecosystems improves the quality of life for present and future generations. The Sustainable Sites Initiative Guidelines and Performance Benchmarks, 2009

15 What is Sustainable Landscaping? Designs that minimize resource inputs.

16 What is Sustainable Landscaping? Designs that minimize resource inputs. Landscaping that takes advantage of natural features such as topography, hydrology, geology, and existing plant communities. i i i

17 What is Sustainable Landscaping? Designs that minimize resource inputs. Landscaping that takes advantage of natural features such as takes advantage natural features such as topography, hydrology, geology, and existing plant communities. Landscapes designed to minimize maintenance requirements.

18 What is Sustainable Landscaping? Designs that minimize resource inputs. Landscaping that takes advantage of natural features such as takes advantage natural features such as topography, hydrology, geology, and existing plant communities. Landscapes designed to minimize maintenance requirements. Landscapes that reflect a local aesthetic. l l h

19 What is Sustainable Landscaping? Designs that minimize resource inputs. Landscaping that takes advantage of natural features such as topography, hydrology, geology, and existing plant communities. Landscapes designed to minimize maintenance requirements. designed maintenance Landscapes that reflect a local aesthetic. Work that provides a living wage. g

20 R C i Resource Conservation: The efficient use of land, less wasteful use of non renewable resources and their substitution by renewable resources whenever possible. The maintenance of biological diversity. Considering the embodied energy in materials and services.

22 Elements Addressed in Certification Programs Site Design i Installation Practices Maintenance Equipment and Vehicles Materials Handling and Storage and Training Customer Education

23 Irrigation Adjustment

24 Solar Power on shops

25 Energy efficient vehiclesefficient

26 Selling Sustainability Without t Green Washing

27 How can we do this?

28 Xeriscaping The Denver Water Board 1981 Xeros ( ) = Dry (Greek) + Landscaping 1. Planning & Design 2. Zoning Plants 3. Soil The Seven Principles 4. Efficient Irrigation 5. Turf and Turf Alternatives 6. Mulching 7. Maintenance

29 Zone 3: Low Inputs Zone 2: Moderate Inputs Xeriscape Concept Zone 1: High Inputs

30 Not ZEROSCAPING

31 Ecosystem Services Ecosystem services are goods and services of direct or indirect benefit to humans that are produced by ecosystem processes involving the interaction of living elements, such as vegetation and soil organisms, and non living elements, such as bedrock, water, and air. The Sustainable Sites Initiative Guidelines and Performance Benchmarks, 2009

32 Regionalization Ecoregions denote areas of general similarity in ecosystems and in the type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources; they are designed to serve as a spatial framework for the research, assessment, management, and monitoring of ecosystems and ecosystem components. By recognizing the spatial differences in the capacities and potentials of ecosystems, ecoregions stratify the environment by its probable the environment its response to disturbance. Ecoregions are directly applicable to the immediate needs of state agencies, including the development of biological criteria and water quality standards. They are also relevant to integrated ecosystem management, an ultimate goal of g g many federal and state resource management agencies. The approach used to compile this map is based on the premise that ecological regions can be identified through the analysis of the spatial patterns and the composition of biotic and abiotic phenomena that affect or reflect dff differences in ecosystem quality and integrity. These d phenomena include geology, physiography, vegetation, climate, soils, land use, wildlife distributions, and hydrology. US Environmental Protection Agency, Western Ecology Division 2011

33 Ponderosa Pine / Bitterbrush Woodland