"Green Laws" 

Prof. Buck Abbey, ASLA, CELA

Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana

         © all rights reserved

"Green Laws"

Abstract

Architects, Engineers and Interior Designers have designed with life safety codes for many years.  The codes set forth design standards, commonly accepted construction practices and agency requirements that must be met in all construction. Designers are required to see that their construction plans are in compliance and contractors must build according to the code.

Only recently have landscape codes come into existence in communities across the nation. As a result, landscape architects  are having to change the way they approach design.  More and more communities are requiring that landscape plans be drawn to code and meet various technical requirements that are being enacted by city councils across the land.  This is having both positive and negative effects on the way code administrators practice and on the way they train their inspection staff.  Landscape codes are causing the profession of landscape architecture to change as it surely will in the years ahead.

The article presented here defines the general nature of  landscape codes, mentions codes from specific cities and gives examples of why cities are adopting these codes and why these codes are starting to change the practice of landscape architecture.  Landscape codes will change the way cities build in the twenty-first century. Landscape architects must insist that these codes be written in the proper manner to encourage creative design and not to thwart the creative process that has been the central feature of a landscape architects method of practice .

..."every owner or inhabitant of any and every house in Philadelphia, Newcastle and Chester shall plant one or more trees, viz., pines, unbearing  mulberries, water poplars, lime or other shady and wholesome trees before the door of his, her or their house and houses, not exceeding eight feet from the front of the house, and preserve the same to the end that the said town may be well shaded from  the violence of the sun in the heat of summer and thereby be rendered more healthy"....

Eighteenth Century American Landscape Code

Green Laws in the 21st Century

 Landscape codes often called "green laws" or "landscape ordinances" are the only municipal legislation concerned with the way the green and growing infrastructure of a community is built and maintained. These laws, in addition to a host of tax, labor, retirement, employee safety and health care laws directly effect the profession of landscape architecture.  Landscape Architects in the twenty-first century will see more  green laws and ordinances regulating the technical aspects their work and protecting the environment and the general public.  Some regulation will be welcome, some may seem a burden, and some will not be wanted at all.  Never-the-less, we will see more state and local law effecting the way landscape architects design.

The history of green laws and how they regulate the landscape architecture profession is very recent, although we can trace the thread of their history  back many centuries.

History of Landscape Law

Western civilization is based upon written law.  Laws have been written for centuries to regulate the relations between human beings.  Traditional laws were handed down in verbal manner until Babylonian King Hammurabi developed his famous code in 1750 B.C. This code was written or inscribed on a stone column and consisted of 3600 lines of cuneiform text.  Within the Hammurabi Code can be seen the first language that proscribed the proper way to build. 

Many builder's, even today, live under the  general direction  and intent of this seminal law of building construction.  The code has been handed down, modified and changed over the centuries but still relates to the way modern cities are built.

No idea of mankind was more significant than the concept of written law.

To some extent, Hammurabi's Code is the basis of landscape ordinances which did not appear in the historical record as we understand them today until some five thousand four hundred and fifty years later.

The earliest of all recorded landscape laws in the United States is the Pennsylvania Shade Tree  Law which dates to the 18th century.  This early community ordinance mandated that landscaping should take place at each home in the village for the public good.

This law can also be cited as the first  landscape ordinance. The law describes what we call today  "landscape design components,"  "technical  standards," "administrative regulations" and "suggested landscape plant species" that must be proper "installation technique" and "maintenance" according to accepted methods of the of nursery and horticulture trades. These items form the structural basis of contemporary landscape codes.

The history of landscape ordinance legislation closely parallels the history of zoning laws in this country and some of their roots may be traced to early case law decisions that effect property and peoples use of land.  Seminal land use law decisions included  City of San Francisco v. Yick Wo and Hang Kie  1886,   Euclid v. Ambler Realty  1926, and the famous Ayres v. City of Los Angeles  1949 and Berman v. Parker  1954. The later case eventually made its way to the United States Supreme Court and extended the police power to regulate aesthetics.

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The Ayres decision specifically ruled on the governments authority of requiring the planting of trees and shrubs on private land for the public good as well as health and safety benefits to society.   The California  court upheld the City Council and Planning Commission who imposed planting requirements in a subdivision of the Westchester District of the City at the intersection of Arizona Avenue and Sepulveda Boulevard.  A condition was imposed by the planning commission that required a ten foot strip along the rear of lots to be restricted to the planting of trees and shrubs.  The purpose for this planting requirement was to confine traffic and circulation to and from the lots and to screen lot owners from traffic noises, fumes and views of fast moving traffic on the Sepulveda Boulevard.  This was thought reasonable by both the planning commission and the City Council as a way to provide safety islands for residents crossing the street and living in this new subdivision.  The imposition of the condition was reasonably related to the protection of the public health, safety and general welfare.  Plant materials and set aside space were seen as a useful tools by the city but a waste of private property on the part of the Developer.  The controversy was settled in court and the decision was the first example of a modern landscape ordinance that was tested based upon safety and public health and the police power of zoning.    Modern landscape ordinances can be tied to the date of the Aryes and Berman decision. 

What we have today as landscape codes are a result of all of these early court decisions and certain Federal and state enabling laws set in place sometime after "earth day" 1970. Laws like the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act and law that created the EPA directly began to impact the work of landscape architects. 

No one knows where the first true landscape code was written in the late 1960's although it is suspected to have been written in California. Cities began writing landscape codes in earnest in the 1970's and continued through 1980's and 1990's.  States like Florida and California wrote laws to manage growth, while states like Arizona and Nevada drafted them to protect water supplies. Texas, Louisiana and Georgia wrote codes in the 80's to develop community design standards. In the 1990's states like North Carolina, Kentucky and Virginia are writing codes to preserve habitat and protect tree cover.

The very early ordinances,  (1970's),  took a  regulatory tone and seem to aimed at eliminating bad practices in the construction industry and too control rapid urban growth.  These codes required such things as the grassing of construction sites, mowing vacant lots or protecting vegetation on public properties such as along streets and in public parks.  

In the 1980's emphasis changes more toward encouraging better design.  This generation of ordinances were written to provide for better designed of parking lots and buffer yards between zoning districts.  These ordinances were developed in a way to require uniform plantings based upon plant size and spacing requirements and encouraged a mix of plant materials. 

The language of the 1990's landscape ordinances are trending toward habitat preservation, land alteration restrictions, tree protection and xeriscape using water efficient landscape design principles.  Provisions are now being written  and inserted into landscape ordinances in many communities directed toward the preservation of natural resources like wetlands, steep slopes, wooded areas, scenic roadways edges and important view sheds.

Current ordinances  are placing additional emphasis on  design by requiring licensing and by establishing community appearance boards.  Another interesting factor  being seen in many of the ordinances of the 1990's, are standards for those who are qualified to prepare landscape designs, irrigation plans, grading plans, tree inventories  and tree preservation plans.  Many states now are requiring that these plans and specifications for landscape improvements be made by registered licensed landscape architects.  This is a point of great importance to the profession of landscape architecture.

Code Administration

As more and more cities enact landscape codes, code administrators will need to improve their knowledge of plant materials, urban planting technology, irrigation, and design issues.  Perhaps, even more important, code administrators will need to understand how to write, review and make needed improvements to the landscape code they will be called upon to administrator. Code administrative staffs will certainly be looking to employ professional trained in the such topics as landscape architecture, horticulture, urban forestry and landscape construction. Many people trained in landscape architecture are finding their way into permit offices and are reviewing and approving landscape plans prepared by landscape architects.

It might be argued that code administration will be one of the greatest employment growth areas for landscape architects in the coming years as more and more cities write landscape codes to manage the green infrastructure of the city.

Code Compliance

In the private sector, Architects, Engineers and Interior Designers have designed with life safety codes for many years.  The codes set forth design standards, commonly accepted construction practices and agency requirements that must be met in all construction. Designers are required to see that their construction plans are in compliance and contractors must build according to the code.

Only recently have landscape codes, which to some extent make the same demand on Landscape Architects, come into existence in communities across the nation.  The codes are site specific so designers, administrators and builders must understand the "geography of a development site" and how it is to be properly and safely built.  See Figure 1. As a result of these new codes, members of the profession of Landscape Architecture are having to change the way they approach design and so are the code administrators who have to monitor the construction of their work.  More and more communities are requiring that landscape plans be drawn to code and meet various technical requirements that are being enacted by city councils across the land.  This is having both positive and negative effects on the way landscape architects practice and on the way code administrators see that the man made landscape of cities and towns is properly and safely built. This especially so in hurricane prone areas.

Landscape codes are causing the work of code administrators, planners and landscape architects to change, and change rapidly.

Landscape Codes

An emerging way to ensure that nature in the city is cared for is to enact a landscape code which specifies minimum standards for caring for nature in the city.  In recent years, city after city across the nation have turned to this type of legislation as a means of ensuring better community design and better landscape construction in the city.

Landscape codes typically provide for the constuction of such site facilities as parking lots, pavements, urban walls, landscape buffers, irrigation systems, screens, ASA standards and plantings that serve a variety of uses. See Figure 2. In some communities, the reason for their ordinance is the protection of the public by putting soem regulation on those that provide design services while in other communities, they are creating standards to protect tree canopy, provide for shade, prevent run off and cool hot pavement.

While many communities enact ordinances merely for beauty or economic development, there are other reasons.  In recent years Davis, California enacted a landscape ordinance for solar control while Irvine, California enacted an ordinance to promote sustainability which is a form or recycling natural resources and energy.  Many communities in the Florida such as Lake Mary and St. Lucie County base their ordinances on the need to conserve and reuse water.

Most landscape ordinances provide that nature is re-built following common construction activities.  Construction take a toll on nature primarily through site clearing and grading which remove trees, native top soil and alters the ground water table or site drainage regime. Enlightened communities no longer allow developers carte-blanche power to build construction projects without considering nature or the natural infrastructure of the city. 

Standard Landscape Code

Building codes, hurricane codes, flood proofing codes and other life safety codes which serve a similar purpose for the built environment have been in effect in this country for many years.  However, in most cities in America, the work that landscape architects do, seldom falls under the building codes that regulate the practice of architecture, engineering, interior design or general construction. Landscape architects, of all the design professions, rarely have their plans and specifications reviewed by local permit or inspection offices or by offices of State Fire Marshals, whose duty is to insure compliance with health, safety and welfare laws. 

 The Standard Building Code as published by the Southern Building Code Congress International does not have a landscape code that sets constuction performance standards nor prescriptive requirements for landscape construction, landscape material, landscape material installation or maintenance. They do cover related trades such as wood construction, foundations, concrete, masonry, metal. electrical, plumbing but all in relationship to buildings. Not the built landscape.

Perhaps it is time for a standard landscape code to be written!

In that there is no standard model landscape code to follow, cities towns and villages are adopting landscape ordinances, modeled after codes passed in nearby cities and towns. This method is fraught with defect as one might imagine when each community has different climate, soils, drainage and other natural factors that weigh in heavily with these codes.

City officials have found that these ordinances are useful for directing growth in a positive manner and for making cities more livable. For this reason they will not go away, but will only multiply.  There is presently no national standard for the drafting of landscape codes. This may change as more and more information is published about this type of legislation.

When the need to protect nature in the city was realized as an important community value, places like Tampa, Florida, Ann Arbor Michigan and Glendale, Arizona found that written development law  seemed to be the answer. Los Angeles's  new landscape code is based on science and a proposed code in Lexington, Kentucky will attempt to rebuild a suitable tree canopy for each zoning district of the city. Little towns like South Holland Village, Illinois, Denham Springs, Louisiana and Aspen, Colorado simply want good landscape design.

Conclusion

These types of ordinances have a place in society and all of them effect the profession of landscape architecture, urban forestry, horticulture and landscape construction. In the future, we may well see more of this type of ordinance and we must learn the special vocabulary of site design that these codes engender. See Table 1.  Recent research and an increasing public interest in this subject shows evidence of this trend.  City planning staffs, code administrators. building officials and plan reviewers will have to change, and change fast, to meet the demands that these laws are placing on those professionals that design and build the man made environment.

More detailed examples of these codes can be found in the recently published book, U.S. Landscape Ordinances  published by John Wiley & Sons, New York. This should be a standard reference handbook for every code administrator, planning director and building official in the nation.

References

Abbey, D.G. Buck, "Green Laws, Landscape Codes On The Horizon".  Southern Building, Southern Building Code Congress International, Birmingham, Alabama. 1999.     With the publisher.

Abbey, D.G. Buck, "Green Laws, Landscape Codes In The Twenty-first century".  Landscape Journal, Council of Educators In Landscape Architecture, University of Wisconsin Press, Madison, Wisconsin.1999.

 With the publisher.

Abbey, D.G. Buck, "Green Laws, Building Landscapes In The Twenty-first century".  Proceedings 1999 ASLA Annual Meeting, American Society of Landscape Architects, Washington D. C.. 1999.

Abbey, D.G. Buck, "U.S. Landscape Ordinances".  John Wiley & Son, Inc., New York, NY. 1998.

Abbey, D.G. Buck, "Guide To Writing A Landscape Ordinance".  Louisiana  Association of Nurserymen, Baton Rouge, LA. 1988.

Abbey, D.G. Buck, "Guide To Writing A City Tree Ordinance".  Louisiana  Association of Nurserymen, Baton Rouge, LA. 1993.

Bernhardt, E.A. and Swiecki, T.J., Guidelines for Developing and Evaluating Tree Ordinances, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Urban Forestry Program, Scaramento, CA. 1991.

Fazio, James., How To Write A Municipal Tree Ordinance, Bulletin No. 9. National Arbor Day Foundation, Nebraska City, Nebraska. 1991.

Duerksen, Christopher. J., Richman, Suzanne,  Tree Conservation Ordinances, PAS Report Number  446, American Planning Association, Chicago, Il. 1993.

Moll, Gary, Ebenreck, Sara., Shading Our Cities, Island Press, Washington D.C., 1989.

Robinette, Gary, O. "Local Landscape Ordinances." Agora Communications, Plano, Texas, 1992.

Shaw, R., Sanzone, S., Locke, N., "Aspen, Colorado, Public Policy And the Evolution Of A Town".  Proceedings 1999 ASLA Annual Meeting, American Society of Landscape Architects, Washington D. C.. 1999.

__________________., Standard Building Code, 1997 editon, Southern Building Code Congress International, Birmingham, Alabama, 1997.

__________________., Manual For Hurricane Resistant Construction, Southern Building Code Congress International, Birmingham, Alabama, 1993.

Biography

Prof. D.G. Buck Abbey is Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture at LSU and Principal of the Louisiana, landscape architecture - planning firm, Abbey Associates, Inc.. He has taught design, construction, graphics and computer technology courses at LSU. Abbey received his terminal degree from Harvard University.  He is a recognized authority on municipal landscape codes and is author of the book U.S. Landscape Ordinances published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. in 1998.  He provides consulting services on landscape codes and site planning nationwide.

He maintains a research web site at LSU on the subject of landscape, tree and land alteration ordinances. The site provides assistance to anyone seeking help with writing landscape codes, tree preservation laws and land development code.  The site can be visited at www.design.lsu.edu/greenlaws