Interested parties have until Jan. 20 to comment on a draft set of guidelines for sustainable landscapes that is the first step toward a green-landscape rating system. Guidelines and Performance Benchmarks Draft 2008, considered the first comprehensive look at sustainable landscape design, construction and maintenance, will eventually be joined by The Sustainable Sites Initiative Rating System, expected in 2011, and the Sustainable Sites Initiative Reference Guide, expected in 2012.
The publications are projects of the Sustainable Sites Initiative, a partnership of Washington, D.C.-based American Society of Landscape Architects, the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center at the University of Texas, Austin, and the U.S. Botanic Garden. The U.S. Green Building Council is expected to incorporate the group’s upcoming metrics into its LEED green-building rating system.