THE DEVELOPMENT OF LANDSCAPE DESIGN PRINCIPLES BASED UPON ECOSYSTEM AESTHETICS, AND THEIR APPLICATION IN REHABILITATING DIABLO LAKE OVERLOOK, ROSS LAKE NATIONAL RECREATION AREA, WASHINGTON By TRACI MICHELLE DEGERMAN A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE IN LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture MAY 2007 ©Copyright by TRACI MICHELLE DEGERMAN, 2007 All Rights Reserved ©Copyright by TRACI MICHELLE DEGERMAN, 2007 All Rights Reserved To the Faculty of Washington State University: The members of the Committee appointed to examine the thesis of TRACI MICHELLE DEGERMAN find it satisfactory and recommend that it be accepted. ____________________________________ Chair ____________________________________ ____________________________________ ii ACKNOWEDGEMENT I am deeply grateful to Regina Rochefort (science advisor, North Cascades National Park Service Complex), Mignonne Biven (plant ecologist, North Cascades National Park Service Complex), Michael Brondi (greenhouse maintenance, North Cascades National Park Service Complex), Charis Wilson (records manager/FOIA officer, National Park Service Technical Information Center), Brooke Childrey (curator, Mount Rainier National Park), and Susan Dolan (historical landscape architect, Mount Rainier National Park) for their insight and assistance during the course of my project research. iii THE DEVELOPMENT OF LANDSCAPE DESIGN PRINCIPLES BASED UPON ECOSYSTEM AESTHETICS, AND THEIR APPLICATION IN REHABILITATING DIABLO LAKE OVERLOOK, ROSS LAKE NATIONAL RECREATION AREA, WASHINGTON. Abstract By Traci Michelle Degerman, M.S. Washington State University May 2007 Chair: William G. Hendrix As development consumes more land once occupied by natural ecosystems, there is an increasing need for design professionals possessing the knowledge, skill and desire to imbue their works with properties of nature. No longer simply a matter of reduced aesthetic quality and social disconnect from the natural world, the disruption of ecosystem processes by development is accelerating the pace at which the environment is losing its ability to cope with the byproducts of modern civilization: pollution, resource depletion and loss of biodiversity. Ecologically based design offers a promising means for reconnecting humanity with nature’s processes. The structure of natural ecosystems and their biotic communities provides a template for ecological design which can be utilized for both new developments and the rehabilitation of degraded sites. Ecosystem aesthetics is a set of design principles and practices for creating self-sufficient landscapes iv similar in physical structure and species composition to regionally proximate natural vegetation communities. Benefits of this design ethic include the maintenance of biodiversity, the resurrection or perpetuation of ecosystem processes on developed sites, amelioration of the negative visual impacts of development, and a heightened appreciation for the beauty of natural ecosystems and the essential services they provide. Landscape architects must be both empathetic to the needs and desires of their clientele, and aware of the site’s ecological elements and cultural history. Educating oneself in the local biological and social vernacular will aid in the design process and result in a plan that celebrates the region’s unique character. This project employs the ecosystem aesthetic design principles to create a landscape at Diablo Lake Overlook that will give the public a glimpse of the natural beauty beyond the highway corridor, and return some ecological function to this severely degraded site. Surmountable challenges to the rehabilitation of Diablo Lake Overlook include cost and the availability of materials called for in the design. Long-term management objectives for this site must account for successional change in the vegetation component at the overlook, and determine the appropriate response that will protect both the resource and the quality of the visitor experience. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS……………………………………………………………....iii ABSTRACT……………………………………………………………………………...iv LIST OF TABLES………………………………………………………………………..xi DEDICATION……………………………………………………………………...........xii INTRODUCTION………………………………………………………………………...1 PART ONE DEVELOPING A SET OF WORKING PRINCIPLES FOR ECOLOGICALLY BASED, AESTHETIC LANDSCAPE DESIGN……….……………3 The Foundation: Properties of Natural Ecosystems……………………………….3 Vegetation associations……………………………………………………4 Communities………………………………………………………………4 Diversity…………………………………………………………………...4 Temporal variation………………………………………………………...5 Distinguishable patterns of species assembly………………………..........7 Aesthetic value…………………………………………………………….7 The Framework: Basic Landscape Design Principles………………………….....8 Consequences of Design Disconnected from Nature…………………………….10 vi Healing the Dichotomy between Human-Centered and Ecologically Based Design…………………………………………….........11 Defining Ecosystem Aesthetics, its Design Principles, Applications and Benefits………………………………………………………..14 Origins of the concept……………………………………………………14 Definition………………………………………………………………...16 Principles and practices…………………………………………………..17 Applications for the practice of ecosystem aesthetics……………………19 Benefits of ecologically based landscaping……………………………...20 Distinctions from other sustainable and native plant landscaping practices…………………………………………………….21 A Critical Difference between Ecosystem Aesthetics and Ecological Restoration……………………………………………………………………….22 Essential References for Developing an Ecologically Based Design Concept…..23 Ecology and ecosystem function………………………………………...24 Natural history of the Pacific Northwest and North Cascades region…...24 Ecologically based design………………………………………………..25 Native plant, sustainable, and naturalistic landscaping………………….24 Landscape construction…………………………………………………..26 Environmental ethics…………………………………………………….26 Human psychology in regards to nature…………………………………26 vii Strategies for minimizing visitor impacts to wilderness: site design and public education………………………………………………………….27 PART TWO A THEORETICAL APPLICATION OF THE ECOSYSTEM DESIGN PRINCIPLES: DIABLO LAKE OVERLOOK…………………………………………………………..28 Overview of the North Cascades Region………………………………………...28 The physical environment………………………………………………..28 Plant associations………………………………………………………...30 The human component: aboriginal residents and European immigrants...33 Land management history………………………………………………..35 Completion of the North Cascades Highway…………………………….36 The Project Site: Diablo Lake Overlook…………………………………………36 Location………………………………………………………………….36 Contemporary site description…………………………………………...37 Shortcomings of the existing situation…………………………………...39 Essential improvements and new features: the design program…………41 Description and benefits of the Diablo Lake Overlook rehabilitation design……………………………………………………...42 Short- and long-term maintenance of the rehabilitation design following installation…………………………………………………….47 viii Lessons from the past: alternative, unrealized visions for Diablo Lake Overlook…………………………………………………………………49 CONCLUSION CHALLENGES INVOLVED IN THE REHABILITATION OF DIABLO LAKE OVERLOOK……………………………………………………………………………..51 Complicating Factors: the Ecological Component………………………………51 Complicating Factors: the Human Component………………………………….54 Long-term Oversight and Maintenance………………………………………….56 Determining the Appropriate Management Emphasis…………………………...56 BIBLIOGRAPHY………………………………………………………………………..58 APPENDIX A. Vegetation zones in the North Cascades………………...…………..……….64 B. The location of North Cascades National Park Service Complex and Diablo Lake Overlook………………………………………...……………...65 C. Existing site features at Diablo Lake Overlook……………………………...67 D. Problem areas at Diablo Lake Overlook……………………………………..71 E. Planview of the current layout at Diablo Lake Overlook……………………73 F. Master plan and site details for the Diablo Lake Overlook rehabilitation design………………………………………………………………………...74 G. Planting plans for the Diablo Lake Overlook rehabilitation design…………76 ix H. Hand-drawn perspective illustration of the proposed Diablo Lake Overlook shelter and alpine interpretive garden………………………………………..79 I. Plan drawings for the initial construction and design of Diablo Lake Overlook…………………………………………………….80 x LIST OF TABLES 1. Common terminology used by professionals in ecological restoration, civil engineering, resource management and landscape architecture……………………....23 2. Summary of deficient elements at Diablo Lake Overlook and proposed remedial measures………….........................................................................................................41 3. Activities entailed in moderate and intensive post-installation landscape maintenance regimes at Diablo Lake Overlook……………………………………………………..49 4. Native plant species currently propagated at NOCA…………….…………………...52 xi Dedication This thesis is dedicated to my husband, Eric, for his unwavering support, encouragement, patience and love. xii INTRODUCTION The benefits of the ecological view seem patent to me, but equally clear are the profound changes which espousal of this view will effect.1 Ian McHarg On a clear day, the view is stunning: imperious, rocky crests joined by lushly forested slopes cradling a deep valley filled with turquoise water. This was not what I saw during my second visit to Diablo Lake Overlook. My view on that blustery afternoon consisted of a broad expanse of asphalt, a few scattered