Reply To: To What Extent Should Ethics and Environemtnal Issues Drive Landscape Architects in their Projects

[Bob Luther]

As to specific examples of what landscape architecture is in Southern California, I am currently working on project located in a native oak canyon south of Los Angeles. The developer will do massive amounts of grading to the canyon to carve in 48 homes on 80 acres of land. Of this 80 acres 51+ acres of the project will be replanted with 365 native Coast Live Oak and a mixture of native grasses, coastal sage scrub shrubs, and riparian species (requiring 500-600 lbs of seed). The first 15′ of all lots will be a native grass and wildflower mix. The planting is guided by local city and fire design codes as well as assistance by local biologists. These open spaces will require irrigation to promote establishment of the plant materials. Once completed the site will look like an undisturbed native habitat (in roughly 40-80 years). The debate can be raised that this project should not be undertaken because it disrupts and disturbs too much native habitat, I do not disagree, but the project will get built one way or the other, so the ethical question is do you get involved with a project like this one and try your hardest to make the project the best that it can possibly be, or do you hand it off to the next LA to do the work? That is what Landscape architects in Southern California have to decide everyday. So please get off this trip about how in California they only do greenie planting and on the east coast we are so much more knowledgeable, it does not help the situation.