By: Jim Tolstrup
Across Colorado and the West there is a growing awareness of the high cost and in many cases the lack of availability, of water for landscaping and development. Since 2001, our team has been exploring alternatives to thirsty turf grass and exotic landscape plants by focusing on native plant species that require little or no water. Our nonprofit environmental center is celebrating the 20th anniversary of our founding, spurred by the concept of a homebuilder, McStain Neighborhoods, and McWhinney, the master developer of Centerra, an award-winning 3,000-acre master-planned community in Loveland, which readily adopted the visionary idea for preserving and managing open space within the development.
Over the past two decades, our center has worked with McWhinney and other landowners, within Centerra and beyond, to establish or restore hundreds of acres of native vegetation. The cost of maintaining native grass can be 90% less than turf grass due to the avoided costs of mowing, watering, fertilizing, and other maintenance. However, managing these areas
requires specialized skills and knowledge to be successful. As the executive director of HPEC, I’ve recently published a book, SUBURBITAT, that highlights the center’s work and tells the story of Colorado’s history from its primordial past to the present-day development of the land.
The book provides detailed information on how to establish and maintain beautiful, sustainable landscapes that conserve natural resources and provide a distinct sense of place, celebrating Colorado’s unique natural diversity. The book provides detailed instructions for others who wish to create water-saving native landscapes, as well as explore the social aspects of landscaping in collaboration with nature. This includes managing expectations and establishing realistic timelines for the establishment of native open spaces and living with rather than eradicating the wildlife that is attracted to them.
The development community has the opportunity to create landscapes that are vibrant and interesting year-round, in a way that will allow people and wildlife to continue to thrive. We have observed firsthand how dramatically and rapidly our local birds and pollinators recover when we grow native plants in our gardens. There are over 40 million acres of turf grass in the U.S. More herbicides, pesticides, and fertilizers are used on this crop, per acre, than any other crop. Some 800 million gallons of gas are used every year to mow American lawns. Here in Colorado, a minimum of 18 gallons of water are needed per square foot, per year, to keep lawns green. The average use of water in Colorado for landscaping alone is about 90 gallons per person per day.
Over the next 20 years, Colorado’s population is expected to grow by roughly 30%, increasing from 5.7 million in 2019 to 7.52 million in 2040. As populations grow, particularly along the Front Range, pressures on our dwindling water resources will continue to increase. Rising temperatures cause plants to accelerate transpiration, which increases the amount of water used to maintain landscaping, putting additional strain on water supplies. There is simply no question that our water usage in landscaping is unsustainable. LEED construction, which reduces energy consumption in commercial buildings, is a great example of the way that businesses cannot only anticipate and respond to environmental issues but also can lead the process toward sustainable development in ways that are in turn rewarded in the marketplace. Sustainability is no longer an isolated movement but rather an imperative and an expectation for many environmentally conscious homebuyers. Sustainable landscaping is a natural extension of this concept.
Access to trails, nature, and open space are also frequently rated as highly desirable amenities for potential homebuyers. Far from being an inferior concession to economy and practicality, native landscapes can be beautiful and provide year-round interest while supporting wildlife in the midst of the communities that we design and build – restoring nature where we live, work, and play.
Jim Tolstrup is the executive director of the High Plains Environmental Center, located in the Centerra master-planned community in Loveland. The environmental nonprofit is focused on open space management, wetland restoration, native plant propagation, and environmental education and outreach. He can be reached at jim@suburbitat.org
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