People’s mental notions of the words “sustainability” and “green building” in today’s world are vast. There are numerous components of a building that are created to the LEED criteria that can be termed turning green or constructing sustainable, with the two words going hand in hand. Sustainability can refer to our environment, our ecology, or even our economics, and while each of these benefits our country and the world in several ways, sustainability in landscaping integrates all three into its definition.
Sustainable landscaping is the use of effective landscape planning to help cut a building’s energy expenditures, reduce water runoff, and improve overall building performance. Buildings can help the environment and the inhabitants of the building or structure in a variety of ways by using pervious surfaces and native plants around their buildings for shading and native plants on the roofs of their structures to help lower energy costs and runoff, respectively. The landscapes of a building play a far larger influence than most people in today’s society realise and can have a significant positive impact on our future.
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The landscaping of a building can have a significant impact on the overall appearance of the building or structure, as well as how the building works. In recent years, commercial apartment complexes have been a prominent role in incorporating a building’s landscaping into the building envelope itself to assist the structure conserve energy and reduce water runoff. When compared to the square footage of a house, the landscaping of a building can be enormous, so why not use that area to help the building and its surroundings work more efficiently while also helping our environment?
Our green or sustainable landscapes, which are extremely beneficial to a building or structure, may prevent the structure from reaching its full potential. Thompson and Sorvig (2007) assert that:
Sustainability is a framework, a methodical approach to connecting ourselves to the natural systems that sustain us. Individual green buildings…will not add up to what is really desired: a global network of healthy places that sustain people and themselves.
With excessive energy consumption and water depletion occurring on a daily basis throughout our country and the world, more actions must be taken in the correct direction to assist save these resources for future generations and create a better environment overall. One of those steps in the correct path is landscaping.
To make sustainable landscapes a part of our everyday built surroundings, builders and designers both locally and nationally must be educated on the benefits of these landscapes. By incorporating green roofs and permeable surfaces into the designs of their landscapes, designers and contractors may save energy, utilise fewer resources, and aid the environment in a variety of ways.
