As a landscape pro, you’re constantly designing, planting, mowing, and working outdoors. While you are creating works of art in lawns across the nation, that doesn’t always correspond to helping Mother Earth.
Here are nine ways from BrightView Landscapes that you can help your clients while improving the environment.
1. Start an urban garden or green roof
The surface temperature of green roofs can be 30 to 40 degrees lower than a conventional roof, and green roofs can reduce a building’s energy requirements, extend the life of the roof system, and help to reduce the surrounding air temperature of cities and towns. In addition to energy benefits, a green roof can absorb 80 percent of rainfall, as compared to the 24 percent absorption capacity of a conventional rooftop.
This increased absorption capacity reduces water run-off and prevents property and downstream flooding.
2. Conserve water
As individuals, we can take shorter showers, only use the dishwasher when it’s full, and be mindful of overwatering your garden. BrightView has conserved hundreds of millions of gallons of water for owners of large corporate campuses, HOA communities, golf courses, municipalities, and mixed-use communities with their water management & irrigation services.
3. Plant a tree and bring plants indoors
Trees remove carbon from the atmosphere. One tree may absorb as much as one ton of carbon during a 40-year lifespan. It’s also estimated 15 to 20 houseplants can purify the interior of a 1,800-square-foot house by removing low levels of carbon monoxide and formaldehyde.
4. Reduce paper needs
Move toward a paperless future with digital billing and employee timesheets, and electronic records.
5. Invest in zero-emission equipment
As the options have evolved, now is a great time to look into zero-emission equipment. Electric mowers eliminate an estimated 6,900 metric tons of CO2, an amount equal to 1,500 cars averaging 12,000 miles a year.
6. Try composting
Using compost to top-dress is a sustainable, organic way to improve the health and appearance your clients' properties while also adding nutrients back to the earth and contributing to vibrant landscapes.
7. Reduce seasonal flower pot waste
In many areas of the country, BrightView uses Ellepots or the RootStepper tray system when buying seasonal flowers. Both of these systems eliminate 18 individual plastic pots per tray. The 18 individual pots are replaced with a single plastic tray. When planting, flowers can be removed from the tray and planted directly into the ground and the plastic trays can be returned to the flower grower to be reused.
In the Northeast region alone, BrightView has eliminated 9 million individual plastic pots over the last 10 years.
8. Recycle and repurpose your plant waste
Recycling is key to preventing unnecessary trash in our landfills. Green debris is repurposed by grinding, composting, and then reintroducing it back onto properties as organic mulch. Recycling reduces fertilizer use, improves overall plant health, and reduces the volume of waste sent to landfills.
9. Power down
Unplug any unused appliances in your branches and other locations. Mother Nature and your bookkeeper will thank you.
From LEED-certified landscape consulting to water management, green roofs to climate-based landscapes, and more, check out BrightView's Environmental Sustainability Page to get some ideas about ways you can combat climate change.
