Greening Stockton

Suggestions from Jamie

LANDSCAPING

Do not mulch native species that are drought tolerant. Mulch should never be piled up around the bases of plants; do not bury any plantings in mulch hills.

“Do not place mulch within 3 inches of trunks or stems”

-Housing V Reforestation Plan2 July 2007

Do not injure trees by hitting them with lawn mowers and string trimmers

Locust near A&S damaged by lawn maintenance

Don’t prune shrubs before they fruit and birds have a chance to feed

9/24/08“Today the maintenance department flat top pruned the cranberrybush viburnums. This is a large shrub that grows 8-12 feet tall, it has a vase shaped habit. Where it is planted, there is no reason to prune it. Removing dead branches is the most maintenance should do. This viburnum has red to purple fall colored foliage and berries that are eaten by birds. Both are all gone. “

Reduce extent of managed turf grass, apart from athletic fields by 50%

Reduce roadside turf grass to less than 15 feet width

Leave an unmowed buffer along all woodland edges

Identify all eroding slopes, shaded areas, etc. where turf grass is not preventing erosion

Replace erosion areas and selected other lawn areas with xeriscaping (as seen at Burlington

Co. College, Pemberton)

Replace lawn along all foundations with xeriscaping or other native plantings

Discontinue mowing under trees, except for footpaths; where necessary, replace with xeriscaping or native shrubs, etc.

No mow zone signs should be created and put in place to explain the areas

to those unfamiliar with this approach

Reduce maintenance• Cut lawns at 4 inch height or higher; mow as

needed only, not on a schedule• Do not mow any non-turf areas (old fields, etc.)

except in winter, preferably every 2-3 years• End use of string trimmers and leaf blowers,

except for clearing paved surfaces; use mulching mowers

• End use of herbicides, except to control invasive species

• Reduce fertilizer by 75% (reduce lawn area 50%; cut application on remaining lawns by 50%)

Develop and implement a forest management plan

Restore open, savanna type habitats

Identify and protect specimen trees

Enhance wildlife habitat

– Snags, fallen logs, brush piles, etc.

– Nest boxes, etc.– Shelter boards for

reptiles and amphibians

End further expansion of roads, etc. into woodlands

Restore native species in woodlands and along powerline

Maintain a diversity of stand types, successional stages (especially brushy open

fields) and plant species, upland and lowland

Keep fire breaks, trails and access roads out of special habitats, like vernal ponds; remove

those that exist

Preserve all existing natural vegetation within the current campus footprint; build only on

already cleared areas

For all future development , maximize preservation of natural vegetation in building

sites outside the existing footprint

Reconnect campus landscape to native vegetation and biodiversity

• Create a gradient of native vegetation between forest edges and turf areas

• Restore margins of lakes and ponds to native vegetation; restrict fishing and other uses to dikes and managed access points

In planting garden areas around buildings, attempt to provide examples of native

plant communities

• Try to arrange plantings to resemble natural communities; use NatureServe and other references for guidance

• Encourage efforts to cultivate native species not available commercially

• Have soil conditions that resemble natural conditions

Favor showy and useful native species, preferably those considered native to the Pine

Barrens by Witmer Stone, the Plants of Southern New Jersey

Remove invasive species from streams, old fields and other succession areas

• autumn (Russian) olive• multiflora rose• wisteria• Eurasian bittersweet• water starwort • Phragmites• etc.

Enhance plant and animal diversity

• Replace “golf course” with native vegetation; golfers can go to commercial establishments and pay the cost of maintaining the lawns

• Discontinue plantings to encourage deer (they don’t need it) replace fields of non-native grasses, etc. with restored native field vegetation

• In choosing native landscape plantings, favor those that provide resources for insects and birds

• Do not use insecticides, except single application BT for gypsy moth control

Construct safe crossing for footpath over Morse’s Mill Stream

Close off ORV trails, especially stream crossings

Close and post all access points; vigorously enforce

Consider impacts on wildlife when planning construction projects

Eliminate light pollution

Replace fixtures to direct light only where needed

Eliminate mercury vapor bulbs

STORMWATER AND EROSION CONTROL

Maintain all sediment

control fences until no danger

remains

Fix broken or absent floatable controls on inlets

Eliminate the fire hose discharge from the cooling tower, or find a way to diffuse the discharge to stop

the gully erosion. Eliminate or fix all similar discharges

Immediately ban parking on unpaved roadsides and in woods

Limit extent of vehicle traffic on unpaved areas

Minimize soil compaction during all construction and maintenance activities

Fix the overland flows around Housing I by restoring native vegetation or planting

absorptive landscaping

Install paved turnarounds and emergency pull offs to eliminate stopping on vegetated

roadsides

Restore native vegetation or install absorptive landscaping in stormwater basins that

currently hold water for over two days, or that have outflows directly into wetlands

Eliminate soil compaction before planting

Restore soil permeability before installing landscaping after construction

Plant species appropriate to the hydrologic and soil conditions

Eliminate soil compaction and restore native vegetation on all eroding surfaces

Eliminate parking on unpaved surfaces

Eliminate concrete trench along College Walk and similar outdated drainage ways; replace

with absorptive landscaping (rain gardens, etc.)

Remove the curbing on the main lots and find a way to send stormwater as sheet flow into the

adjacent wooded strips, after restoring permeability

Develop a comprehensive plan to eliminate discharges of stormwater into

wetlands

Innovative goals• Use natural vegetation of the uplands as

much as possible to absorb stormwater • Where needed, restore such vegetation or

some combination of effective native species (absorptive landscaping)

• Use plants to keep soil permeable• Let plant roots, soil bacteria, etc.

remove/immobilize pollutants as much as possible

Minimize amount of natural vegetation removed or disturbed by construction

Avoid costly engineered solutions, especially those involving importation of materials and excavations – let our plants and soils do what

they do naturally and for free

Focus engineering on getting the stormwater to the vegetation with as little concentration and

as little pollution as possible

Make sure engineered solutions are BMPs (best management practices)

and are sustainable and support maximum possible native biodiversity

Once direct stormwater discharge is eliminated, remove sediment deltas from

Lake Fred, vernal ponds, wetlands, etc.

Replace lots with parking garages

Eliminate the big ditch

EDUCATION• For all construction and landscaping projects,

etc. explicitly include environmental educational values

• Design for education activities• Encourage experimental approaches to

landscaping (and stormwater, to the extent permitted). Monitor all installations for effectiveness in meeting environmental goals

Commit to keeping the campus a viable place for environmental research, including research on

natural ecosystems

EDUCATION• Encourage public access for study and

contemplation of the natural environment• Develop campus guides and a website on

campus ecology and biodiversity

PROCESS• Make as much use as possible of Stockton

classes to research, design, install and monitor projects, in close cooperation with Campus Planning and Campus Operations

• Maintain a completely open process on all projects, giving all students and faculty interested the chance to be involved from the beginning.

• Make all plans, preliminary and final, available for use in the GIS lab

PROCESS, CONT.• Make all consulting studies available for class

and research use as soon as they are submitted, including preliminary reports

• Keep files on applications to public agencies open at all stages for review by faculty and students

• Keep faculty and students informed of the results of all environmental inspections, etc.

Is Stockton currently in violation of any requirements?

For instance, air pollution standards?

• Site ID 70188 Air Violations pending $3800 assessed

NO IDLING!• Educate all staff, faculty, students on “no

idling” law• Post “No idling” signs

Install bicycle shelters at least as nice as those provided for trash dumpsters

Never, ever “greenwash” any aspect of our College environment in publications, promotions, etc.