This Kennett Township property features a sustainable landscape project newly certified by the Sustainable Sites Initiative.
KENNETT – A township resident, Margot Taylor, is leading a pilot sustainable landscape project newly certified by the Sustainable Sites Initiative™ (SITES™) for its sustainable site design, construction and maintenance.
The project, on a township property, joins 11 other projects that have received certification since January 2012.
The Taylor residence was awarded a 3-star rating by SITES, an interdisciplinary effort led by the American Society of Landscape Architects, the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center at The University of Texas at Austin and the United States Botanic Garden to create a voluntary, national rating system and guidelines for sustainable landscapes of all types, with or without buildings. Certification is based on The Sustainable Sites Initiative: Guidelines and Benchmarks 2009.
In May 2010, the property was one of more than 150 national and international projects to be chosen by the SITES partners to test out the four-star rating system and guidelines.
This 1.69-acre residential property and former dairy farm boasts a drip irrigation septic system that handles sensitive wastewater disposal while preserving hillside woodland vegetation, and green roofs that absorb rainwater and reduce peak stormwater surge while regulating building temperature. Additionally, the site includes a designed stormwater system that uses best management practices to direct and control storm water flow, recharge ground water, reduce peak stormwater surge, and create aesthetic landscape features.
The relatively steep slopes on the project site initially posed challenges for water management, as well as the ability to site improvements. However, this became an opportunity to demonstrate creative water management techniques. Improvements including, stone and vegetation lined swales, below grade cisterns, Hugelkultur devices, soil berms, green roofs, holding wet ponds, and rain gardens were worked into the slopes creating terraced rooms and unique garden spaces.
Other unique features of the property include native woodlands and meadows, a potting shed built from salvaged materials, culinary planting beds, a meditation labyrinth, whimsical sculptures, and a straw bale hut.
“I are pleased to be among those taking a lead in applying the SITES rating system to enhance the environmental, social and economic aspects of our projects,” said Margot Taylor, Owner, Landscape Architect, and SITES Project Manager. “This certification is evidence of my design teams commitment to the environment and to our communities.”
Among the specific sustainable design benchmarks met by the property were:
- Efficient management of water resources across the site to preserve the quality and quantity of water resources in the area.
- Restoration of native plant communities to support preservation of biodiversity and ecosystem health.
- Protection and restoration of topsoil resources and health.
- Implementation of site management practices that consider a balance between economic, social and environmental needs.
- Preservation and enhancement of the Cultural and Significant Visual Resources within Kennett Townships.
Among those on the project Design Team are:
- Margot Taylor, RLA, owner & designer, SITES Project Manager, Land Ethics
- Edgar David, RLA, designer & mapping, SED Design Studio
- Russell Losco, soil scientist, Lanchester Soils
- Carol Ohm, P.E. and Stephen Williams, P.E., civil engineering, Apex Engineering
Since 2005, the SITES partners, in conjunction with a diverse group of stakeholder organizations, have worked to transform land development and management practices with this first national rating system for sustainable landscapes. The guidelines apply to any type of designed landscape, with or without buildings, including shopping malls, streetscapes, subdivisions, corporate and academic campuses, transportation corridors, parks and recreation areas, and single family homes.
The U.S. Green Building Council, a stakeholder in the Sustainable Sites Initiative, anticipates incorporating the SITES guidelines and performance benchmarks into future iterations of its LEED® Green Building Rating System™. While LEED minimizes the carbon footprint, SITES demonstrates how a landscape can actually sequester carbon and regenerate living systems. Working together these initiatives will further revolutionize sustainable design.
The SITES Rating System includes 15 prerequisites and 51 different credits, measuring performance in areas such as the initial site selection, water, soil, vegetation, materials, human health and well-being, construction and maintenance – adding up to a 250 point scale. The rating system recognizes levels of achievement by obtaining 40, 50, 60 or 80 percent of available points with one through four stars, respectively. The Taylor Residence earned 169 points and additional 5 pending completion of maintenance monitoring protocols.
