"I have to say you have forced me outside of my usual box and I see Bay-Friendly Landscaping as not only good for your goals and the environment but probably the only way I can economically continue to do civic landscape maintenance."
Dan Nagle, Landscape Manager, City of Hayward, Public Works
The 5th annual Bay-Friendly training and qualification program for experienced, local landscape maintenance professionals is accepting applications. The program is based upon the 7 Bay-Friendly Landscape principles and 55 practices described in Bay-Friendly Landscape Guidelines: Sustainable Practices for the Landscape Professional and will begin in the January 2011.
Next class starts January 18, 2011
Consumers, including Alameda County residents and managers of public use landscapes, are becoming aware of the benefits of Bay-Friendly Landscaping. Local municipalities are encouraging the design, construction and maintenance of landscapes in both the public and private sector. With this increased interest has come an increased need for trained and experienced Bay-Friendly Professionals to manage existing landscapes.
The Bay-Friendly Landscape Maintenance Training and Qualification program will enhance the participant’s knowledge of the Bay-Friendly principles and the many maintenance practices that allow professional landscapers to offer profitable and environmentally sound landscaping services. It will provide landscape maintenance professionals who work in Alameda County and the Bay Area with:
- Knowledge of Bay-Friendly Landscaping as an ecologically based, holistic approach to the management of urban landscapes.
- An understanding of the value of landscaping within the context of the SF Bay ecosystem.
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If you are a landscape professional and you do not have clients in Alameda County but would like to become Bay-Friendly Qualified, visit the following website to learn about training programs offered in Contra Costa, Marin and Napa Counties, with more coming soon:
www.BayFriendlyCoalition.org |
- Hand’s on experience with many cutting edge applications such as sheet mulching.
- An understanding of the connection between nurturing soil health, waste management, water conservation and air & water quality.
- A competitive advantage in the professional landscape maintenance marketplace.
Support for expanding their business to offer BFL maintenance services and to communicate to their clients about Bay-Friendly landscaping.
- Public recognition of their training and knowledge.
The Bay-Friendly Landscaping Training and Qualification program will benefit the residents and communities of the Bay-Area by:
- Reducing the waste stream.
- Encouraging the conservation of water, soil, energy and other natural resources.
- Minimizing stormwater runoff and its impacts
- Protecting air and water quality.
- Providing local agencies with a pool of qualified BFL maintenance professionals who can meet the requirements of maintaining public landscapes in an environmentally friendly manner.
For more information please contact Adrienne Ramirez at aramirez@stopwaste.org.
