Research Finds Many Live Green Indoors, but Not Out

Lack of knowledge plays a key role, underscoring need for the Sustainable Sites Initiative.

While most (96 percent) of U.S. adults have personally adopted sustainable or energy-efficient practices at home, comparatively fewer (58 percent) use energy- or water-saving techniques in their yard, lawn, or garden, according to a new national survey about sustainability commissioned by ASLA. Conducted online by Harris Interactive®, the results were released at the ASLA Annual Meeting and EXPO in Philadelphia.

Of those involved in or responsible for a yard, lawn, or garden where they live, only 29 percent planted shade trees to lower energy costs; 23 percent used maintenance methods that reduce fuel consumption, exhaust, and emissions, such as using a rake instead of a leaf blower; 15 percent harvested rainwater or used recycled water for watering plants; and 11 percent used drip irrigation.

When asked about personally adopted sustainable or energy-efficient practices inside their homes, 91 percent of U.S. adults turned off lights when not in use, and 70 percent installed energy-saving light bulbs. Additionally, 55 percent lessened use of their furnace and/or air conditioner, and 38 percent reported unplugging appliances when not in use.

The survey also examined attitudes of those with yards, lawns, or gardens about sustainable landscape practices. Only 13 percent disagreed with the statement, “I would use more ‘green’ yard practices if I knew more about them”; 16 percent disagreed with, “Using ‘green’ practices in my yard takes little extra effort and time”; and 19 percent disagreed with, “Using ‘green’ practices in my yard saves me money.”

“The results clearly show a desire and willingness to use techniques that reduce utility bills at home, but few know what can be accomplished outside their homes,” said Nancy Somerville, executive vice president and CEO of ASLA. “The space between buildings is just as important—perhaps more so—to not only reducing energy costs, but addressing a broad range of environmental issues.”

The survey comes in advance of a comprehensive November report, coming later this month, on sustainable landscape benchmarks and guidelines from the Sustainable Sites Initiative™, a partnership between ASLA, the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center at the University of Texas at Austin, and the United States Botanic Garden to create voluntary guidelines and a rating system for sustainable landscape design. The U.S. Green Building Council is lending its support to this project and anticipates adoption of the Sustainable Sites metrics into future versions of the LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System.

“This survey reinforces the need for the Sustainable Sites standards and guidelines,” said Susan Rieff, executive director of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. “People want to conserve resources and limit pollution, but they’re not aware that sometimes ‘green’ isn’t really green. And, in many cases, they lack solid, scientifically researched information. Our November report will remedy that.”

The report will offer scientifically researched approaches to create sustainable sites and landscapes ranging from backyard gardens to major urban developments. Additionally, 125 case studies provide real-life examples of projects using many approaches in the guidelines that demonstrate measurable results.

For example, the Garden–Garden project in Santa Monica, California, compared the costs and maintenance of a conventional residential garden with one using sustainable practices. While the native plant garden cost about $4,300 more to construct, it uses 77 percent less water, produces 66 percent less green waste, and costs 68 percent less to maintain per year. Additionally, the Queens Botanical Garden in New York City demonstrated how graywater from sinks can be treated naturally outside and reused while captured rainwater can supply decorative fountains and pools.

“Our goal is to ensure that the initiative is broad based, applicable to a wide audience, and the standards and guidelines will be available free,” said Holly Shimizu, executive director of the United States Botanic Garden. “These standards, once widely used, can change not only the landscape and gardening industry, but also raise public expectations about the health and quality of the built environment.”

A major goal behind the November report is to solicit additional feedback on the proposed benchmarks and guidelines, with a final report to be released in the summer of 2009. The Sustainable Sites Initiative plans to produce a rating system by May 2011 and test the guidelines with pilot projects in 2010 and 2011. For more information, visit www.sustainablesites.org.

Survey Methodology 

Harris Interactive® fielded the study on behalf of ASLA from September 24–26, 2008, via its QuickQuerySM online omnibus service, interviewing a nationwide sample of 2,253 U.S. adults aged 18 years and older, of which 1,642 are involved/responsible for any yard/lawn/garden area where they live. Data were weighted using propensity score weighting to be representative of the total U.S. adult population on the basis of region, age within gender, education, household income, race/ethnicity, and propensity to be online. No estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated; a full methodology is available.