Xeriscaping; sustainable landscaping
Published on Nov 18, 2015
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PRESENTATION OUTLINE
Xeriscaping; sustainable landscaping At Fort LEwis
Comp 253; Marisa Pacheco, Ian Meier, Hans Gillies, Peter Scott
Our project for our comp 253 action research class was focused on sustainable landscaping, xeriscaping and water saving on the Fort Lewis college campus
Photo by Aka Hige
What is Xeriscaping?
- A sustainable form of landscaping
- The usage of native, drought tolerant species
- With the ultimate goal of water conservation
Specifically not turf grass. These plant species have a high resistance to drought situations and can survive naturally in the south west united sates. These plants help conserve water in a area that is so arid. The form of xeriscaping conserves water without compromising the natural aesthetic of your lawn.
Photo by edgeplot
Problem Statement
- The aim of our research project:address water usage on Fort Lewis
- Durango, and the south west is very desperate for water.
- Turf grass landscapes cannot be sustained in such an arid climate
Although water conservation can come through many avenues including lower usage appliances and conscious personal usage, the aim of our research project was to address the problem of water scarcity through the implementation of xeriscaping to help conserve water on the Fort Lewis campus. Currently, Fort Lewis uses thousands of gallons of clean water to irrigate vast areas of turf grass. Students seldom use many of these areas, especially in summer months when evaporation rates are highest.
Photo by Zach Dischner
Purpose
- To gauge an understanding an opinions of campus community
- What actions need to be taken for further implementation
- Unite Fort Lewis community through a mutual desire for sustainability
Photo by यश
Data collection methods
- Surveys
- Interviews
- Archival data
Before starting the data collection method of our research,Our group decided to see what the students and workers of Fort Lewis College think and know about xeriscaping and how they would feel about further implementation on campus. We surveyed a random sample of the student population, Interviewed key figures that had background knowledge about water usage on campus and did archival research that could correlate with any data we would collect.
Photo by Don J Schulte
Findings and outcomes
- Data analysis revealed two major themes
- 1. Opportunities
- 2. Obstacles
When analyzing our data, two main themes became clear. First, we saw that their were many opportunities for furthering the xeriscaping on campus. Through many of the interviews and surveys we saw an overall support for further implementation and with the archival research we noticed that lots has already been done. Next, we also noticed many obstacles in the way of further xeriscape implementation.
Photo by 55Laney69
Opportunities
- Many past initiatives have taken place on campus to further xeriscaping
- Student support
- Future construction on our campus
- Water costs and savings
- Grounds crew experience
-The Sustainability Action Plan mentions the schools commitment to xeriscaping and water conservation and displays ways in which to take action. This has been mentioned by all three interviewees as an initiative that has been put in place by the college to support further implementation. -Student support is a major opportunity for further implementation around campus. --make more notes on the rest--
Photo by cobalt123
Would you support further xeriscaping on campus? (in percentages)
The Sustainability Action Plan mentions the schools commitment to xeriscaping and water conservation and displays ways in which to take action. This has been mentioned by all three interviewees as an initiative that has been put in place by the college to support further implementation.
Photo by faria!
Would xeriscaping help Fort Lewis more sustainable?(In percentages)
The Sustainability Action Plan mentions the schools commitment to xeriscaping and water conservation and displays ways in which to take action. This has been mentioned by all three interviewees as an initiative that has been put in place by the college to support further implementation.
Obstacles
- Funding for further xeriscaping implementation
- Cultural issues regarding implemenation
- Lack of student involvement and initiative
- Grounds crew members claimed that maintenance could be a conflict
Unfortunately, many obstacles are still getting in the way of further implementation of xeriscaping on campus. Some of the obstacles are: Funding for further xeriscaping implementation. many of the obstacles lie within the funding for xeriscaping, xeriscaping costs more the implement than turf grass. and much more money to remove the turf grass on campus.
-the change to more xeriscaped areas is a cultural issue. They claim that most of the students prefer the turf grass areas and that many of the activities on campus require turf grass. attitude and an appreciation of a wilder aesthetic to get more implementation of xeriscaped areas.
-the change to more xeriscaped areas is a cultural issue. They claim that most of the students prefer the turf grass areas and that many of the activities on campus require turf grass. attitude and an appreciation of a wilder aesthetic to get more implementation of xeriscaped areas.
Photo by filarwilliams
Action plan
- A student lead action team that is part of the Environmental Center
- This team would would focus on xeriscaping proposals and education
- Send results to the new Sustainablity Committee on campus
we see a need for increased student action/leadership with regard to water conservation and sustainability on the FLC campus. Areas in which student leadership would be most effective is educating the student body on the topic and creating a permanent student run xeriscaping team. This team would operate from within the environmental center and would work to progress xeriscaping proposals into physical results. In addition we would recommend that information regarding FLC water use be made public and more easily accessible. As of now the place this information is available is deep within the FLC sustainability plan which is unknown to most students. Ideally this would include data on the Fort’s water right, usage rates and associated costs of water used for landscaping purposes.
Photo by mattsantomarco
Happy Earth Day!
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