Green building doesn’t stop at the walls. Sustainable landscape design is a key piece of environmentally responsible architecture, and can include strategies from the kind of plants selected for the yard of a green home to the materials used in the sidewalks surrounding a green commercial building.
One key principle of sustainable landscape design is that each building site is different, with a unique set of green design choices that can result in a smaller impact on the environment, as well as more efficient use of energy and resources. At Paul Cataldo Architecture & Planning PC, our team can tailor a sustainable landscape design to your individual project based on its unique needs and opportunities.
Why Choose Sustainable Landscape Design?
- Reduced energy costs: Certain aspects of sustainable landscape design, like gray water irrigation and green roofs, can greatly reduce energy costs
- Smaller carbon footprint: Tactics such as repurposing pre-existing materials as landscape materials can reduce overall waste and lessen the building’s environmental impact
- LEED certification: If your green building project is pursuing LEED certification, green landscape architecture is essential to achieving valuable credits in several key LEED categories
- Reduced water usage: Choosing drought-resistant indigenous plantings and reducing turf areas can dramatically reduce water consumption
- Reduce Storm Water Run-off: Pervious hardscape surfaces can have the same storm water absorption rates as soft-scaped areas, reducing the load on sewer systems and reducing polluted run-off in local waterways
Ways to Achieve Sustainable Landscape Design
Reduce water consumption
- Drought-resistant landscape
- Native plants suited for the environment
- Rainwater collection for irrigation
- Graywater irrigation systems
Reduce stormwater runoff
- Erosion control
- Sustainable storm water management
- Using permeable pavers (instead of concrete sidewalks)
- Rain gardens
Reduce energy costs & urban heat island effects
- Green roofs
- Bioswales
- Windbreaks
Reduce overall waste
- Choose sustainably harvested or reclaimed wood for decking
- Using recycled products (rubber from tires, glass, etc.) in landscape materials
- Composting in soil management
Would you like to learn more about which of these sustainable landscape design strategies are right for your green building project? Contact us today!