DRAFT Ecologically Sustainable Landscape Initiative April 2014 Acknowledgements Portland Parks & Recreation Staff Interviewed as Stakeholders Amanda Fritz, Commissioner Dave Kahler - retired Mike Abbaté, Director Gordon Kunkle Dominic Maze Project Staff John Long Deborah Lev, Project Champion John Reed Emily Roth, Project Manager Sandra Burtzos Jaime English, Planner (now with OR State Randy Webster Parks) Mark Wilson Colleen Keyes, Editor Other Stakeholder Interviews Portland Parks & Recreation Core Team Dave Elkin - GreenWorks Sue Glenn Michelle Mathis - Michelle Mathis Lance Wright Lauren Schmitt - MIG Mart Hughes Dean Apostle - MIG Mike Carr Kathy Shearin – EMCSWCD Lynn Barlow T Fleisher – Battery Park City Parks Jenn Cairo Conservancy, Director of Horticulture Heather McKillip Brian Wethington Consultant Team – Mayer/Reed Gregory Lozovoy Ryan Carlson, Landscape Architect Don McTaggart Laura Niemi Carol Mayer/Reed, Principal Table of Contents Preface Introduction Watershed Health/Ecosystem Services Ecological Dynamic Landscapes Enhancing habitat and resiliency Evaluation/Measurement Measuring success of ecologically sustainable landscapes Park Staff and Public Acceptance and Education Integrating ecological landscapes into parks Conclusion Appendix A: Initiative Process Appendix B: Glossary of Terms Appendix C: Selected References 4/28/2014 2 Draft Enjoying a Portland Parks & Recreation Natural Area 4/28/2014 3 Draft Preface Portland Parks & Recreation’s Parks 2020 Vision identifies a long term plan for improving park practices. To implement this vision, Portland Parks & Recreation (PP&R) develops three year strategic plans. The 2012-2015 Strategic Plan identifies three Key Result Areas. In the Key Result Area: Manage and Improve Assets, one of the Strategic Themes is Sustainability. The goal of this theme is to “Extend ecologically sustainable landscape management practices over the entire spectrum of PP&R’s green infrastructure.” The Initiative is to establish ecologically sustainable landscape goals and standards through development of a white paper that defines the elements of a sustainable PP&R landscape, including implications for future operations and maintenance (Strategic Plan 2012-15, page 20). Presently, PP&R implements a range of sustainable landscape practices. Examples include: Integrated Pest Management Program since 1988 Irrigation Conservation Practices since 1993 Urban Forestry Management Plan 2004 Formation of City Nature to manage natural areas in 2004 First parks district to be Salmon Safe Certified 2005 48 Community Gardens for a total of 2087 plots This initiative will build on the established ecological and sustainable practices; identify desired future landscapes for increasing ecological functions throughout the park system, set priorities for identifying areas to increase functions and suggest a process for collaboratively working together. This initiative will apply to landscapes in new parks and for rehabilitating specific areas in existing parks. PP&R will select a new park and five areas as demonstration projects and to refine the initiative. The American Society of Landscape Architect’s Sustainable Sites Initiative (SITES 2009) and the New York High Performance Landscape Guidelines (2010) are two examples of comprehensive sustainable landscape programs emphasizing sustainable guiding principles and best practices for parks that were used as references to develop PP&R’s initiative. Examples of best practices include robust site analysis, soil conservation and enhancement, protection of existing vegetation, planting native vegetation, tree protection and replacement, water conservation, stormwater treatment, use of local materials, reduction in herbicides, energy conservation, local food initiatives and stewardship. The City of Portland has adopted two important citywide plans that address climate change and watershed health. PP&R also developed a Climate Action Plan. These plans are also used as guiding documents for this initiative. City of Portland and Multnomah County Climate Action Plan (2009) The Climate Action Plan is a “Portland’s roadmap to cut carbon emissions 80% by 2050” compared to 1990 levels. The plan states objectives and actions for achieving the desired outcomes for the Urban Forest and Natural Systems that include: Expand the urban forest canopy to cover one-third of Portland by encouraging public and private tree plantings to increase shade cover, and controlling invasive species At least 50 percent of the total stream and river length in the city meet urban water temperature goals as an indicator of watershed health The objectives and actions for Food and Agriculture include: 4/28/2014 4 Draft Significantly increase the consumption of local food Reduce consumption of carbon-intensive foods. Portland Watershed Management Plan (2005) The Portland Watershed Plan “will guide City decisions and projects by providing a comprehensive approach to restoring watershed health.” The plan identifies six strategies for improving watershed health: 1. Stormwater Management – reduces impervious area, increases infiltration, and removes pollutants. 2. Revegetation – slows runoff, increases infiltration, traps sediments, and absorbs pollutants 3. Aquatic and Terrestrial Enhancement – improves stream flow, recharges groundwater, provides flood storage, reduces heat island effects, provided connectivity, protects biodiversity and provides habitat for native fish and wildlife species. 4. Protection and Policy – preserves remaining natural areas and ensures sustainable development 5. Operations and Maintenance – increases efficiency, reduces waste, and prevents pollution 6. Education, Involvement and Stewardship – enhances public understanding, generates support, and ensures success. This initiative builds from these efforts to focus on the ecology of landscapes at a system wide level -- the relationship between living organisms and their environment, and the functions and process they provide. This white paper outlines steps to achieve ecologically sustainable landscapes throughout the park system by: Establishing guiding principles Establishing a framework for understanding ecologically sustainable landscapes Continuing to use existing and outlining new best management practices Developing a limited set of desired future landscape, referred to as a habitat patch Outlining a management process Reinforcing the importance of park staff and public support and education. 4/28/2014 5 Draft Introduction Watershed Health/Ecosystem Services “A healthy urban watershed has hydrologic, habitat, and water quality conditions suitable to protect human health, maintain viable ecological functions and processes, and support self-sustaining populations of native fish and wildlife species whose natural ranges include the Portland area.” (2005 Portland Watershed Management Plan p. 41). Watershed health focuses on a systems approach to protect and restore ecological functions in a geographic area defined by a stream and upland conditions. Within the City there are five watersheds: Willamette River, Fanno Creek, Johnson Creek, Columbia Slough and Tryon Creek. The Sustainable Sites Initiative Guidelines and Benchmarks (2009) defines “Ecosystems services are goods and services of direct or indirect benefit to humans that are produced by ecosystem processes involving the interaction of living elements, such as vegetation and soil organisms, and on-living elements such as bedrock, water and air.” (SITES page 6) The committee and staff of the Guidelines and Benchmarks synthesized the research into a short list that sustainable sites can strive to protect or generate through design, construction and best management practices. For this initiative, the following ecosystem services have been selected from SITES list (p6): 1. Global climate regulation: maintaining balance of atmospheric gases at historic levels, creating breathable air, and sequestering greenhouse gases. 2. Local climate regulation: regulating local temperature, precipitation, and humidity through shading, evapotranspiration, and windbreaks. 3. Air and water cleansing: removing and reducing pollutants in air and water. 4. Water supply and regulation: storing and providing water within watersheds and aquifers. 5. Erosion and sediment control: retain soil within an ecosystem, preventing damage from erosion and siltation. 6. Pollination: providing pollinator species for reproduction of crops and other plants. 7. Habitat functions: providing refuge and reproduction habitat to plants and animals, thereby contributing to conservation of biological and genetic diversity and evolutionary processes. 8. Waste decomposition and treatment: breaking down waste and cycling nutrients. 9. Human health and well-being benefits: enhancing physical mental and social well-being as a result of interaction with nature. 10. Food and renewable non-food products: producing food, fuel, energy medicine, or other products for human use. 11. Cultural benefits: enhancing cultural, education, aesthetic and spiritual experience as a result of interaction with nature. Guiding Principles of Ecologically Sustainable Landscapes throughout Portland Parks & Recreation Both The Sustainable Sites Initiative and High Performance Landscape Guidelines; 21st Century Parks for NYC established guiding principles for the development of their sustainable site initiatives. In developing this white paper PP&R modified these principles to establish the following guidelines for ecologically