Innovative and thoughtful material use is an important factor in the Bay-Friendly landscape. Using recycled content, salvaged, durable or local materials conserves resources and will reduce waste and can reduce the amount of embodied energy that is consumed by the landscape.
The Materials Database lists products, suppliers and service providers that correspond with our Green Building and Bay-Friendly Landscaping Guidelines and have been developed in collaboration with industry professionals. The Database is regularly updated to reflect the local availability of materials, development of new materials, and other newly available information.
Following are a few practices to consider when selecting landscape materials.
- Use salvaged items and recycled content materials.
- Salvaged materials are not remanufactured between uses. Finding and using them takes time and ingenuity but in the long run, salvaging conserves resources, can save money and adds interesting elements to the design. Recycled content materials such as plastic or composite lumber make very durable decks or raised garden beds that do not rot, crack or splinter.
- Refer to this guide for more information: Recycled Content Park & Recreation Products in Alameda County
- Check your wood.
- Use sustainably harvested wood (FSC Certified) if plastic or composite lumber is not appropriate. Use treated wood that does not contain chromium or arsenic for any application that specifies treated lumber.
- Keep plant debris on site for use as mulch and/or compost
- When trees need to be removed or pruned, chipping, stockpiling and reusing them on site as mulch will reduce cost of hauling and return important organic material to the soil while providing numerous other benefits such as protecting soil from erosion, conserving water, reducing weeds, fostering beneficial soil organisms and more.
- Specify local products and suppliers.
Transporting items the least distance reduces fuel consumption and air pollution. Consider the source of every item in the landscape.
- If mulch or compost can not be produced from on-site then specifying locally produced mulch or compost will reduce impacts from long distance transportation of fore
- Use local stone, for example, rather than flagstone shipped from the Southwest.
- Consider energy consumption in the choice of materials and equipment
- Outdoor lighting consumes a large fraction of the electricity used in the United States. Site lighting can be designed to use less energy and minimize "light pollution". Use low voltage fixtures and energy efficient bulbs.
- Recycle Landscape Waste. Any materials generated from construction that can not be reused at the site should be recycled. Knowing How and Where to Recycle Landscape Waste is a key component of Bay-Friendly Landscaping.
"You can create recycled hardscapes. To put a positive spin on reused concrete, we call it 'urbanite'."
--Christopher Shein, Owner, Wildheart Gardens, Oakland
