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When planning and designing landscapes for public areas, give consideration to how the landscape functions and implement an appropriate management approach.

The overriding principle in regards to public landscapes should be to protect and enhance ecological systems. In doing this, developers need to identify the best management approach to apply to the site ecology to plan and design the most appropriate outcome.

The three landscape management approaches that can be used are:

1. Retain: Where intact remnant indigenous vegetation communities exist, they should be retained and protected from future development impacts.
2. Regenerate: Where the vegetation community is degraded but will recover with some regeneration, for example, erosion control, weed control, and pest control. Protection and regeneration should be incorporated into the landscape management of the site up to and after occupation.
3. Create: If the site (or part of the site) has little endemic vegetation worth protecting, for example, heavily degraded and polluted sites. The public area landscape design and construction should increase biodiversity, and protect existing remnant vegetation to retain its value, through the use of buffer zones, and erosion control measures.

Case Study - Majura Rise, North Watson, ACT

Majura rise is a new residential estate in Canberra. It is bordered by existing established suburban development to the south and high value nature reserve to the north and east and the Federal Highway to the west.

Due to the sensitive nature of the existing site ecology and the high visual impact of the development, careful consideration was given by the developer to implementing an appropriate strategy based around the retain, revegetate, create strategy.

The following images explain how they implemented these strategies.

Fig. 1  Retain: During the feasibility stage consultants were engaged to identify high value features. Inclusion of the community was important to engaging voluntary activity in the preservation of these areas. Justice Robert Hope Park was identified and retained, and a revegetation management strategy was implemented by the local community group.
 

Fig. 2 Regenerate: As a result of the consultation process, the developers agreed to preserve and regenerate a grassland buffer zone between the high value Yellow Box and Red Gum community (Justice Robert Hope Park). This was bordered by an edge road and the properties facing the road to increase surveillance and public ownership of the area.
 

Fig. 3 Create: Part of the environmental management strategy for the site was to implement Water Sensitive Urban Design ( WSUD) principles. The landscape architect’s brief was to create public landscapes which incorporated on-site retention ponds which were to be highly visible and hence increase public surveillance and ownership of the site. They were also designed to maximise biodiversity on the site.
 

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Case Study - Kingston Foreshore, ACT

Kingston Foreshore is a high quality, medium density mixed residential and commercial development on the edge of Lake Burley Griffin in the inner-south suburb of Kingston.

Due to its proximity to the lake and the adjacent Jerrabomberra Wetlands, the developer was required to mitigate potential environmental impacts of development. The public landscape was extensively used to provide infrastructure to achieve this goal, as well as maximising the amenity of the site through strategic planting prior to construction.

The following images portray how these strategies were implemented:

 

An artificial wetland was constructed in the central parkland of the development. It was designed both to be an attractive recreational space and stormwater mitigation and filtration infrastructure. 
 

The parklands were constructed as part of the first stages of development. By establishing the landscape early in the development process, residents can enjoy a mature landscape that will engage the community and improve their appreciation of environmental strategies in the operation of the public open space.

The street trees and verges were also planted prior to construction of the houses to increase the opportunity for establishment. This improved the chances for healthy growth of the trees and established a street tree character.

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Case Study - City Edge, O’Connor, ACT

The City Edge is a high density mixed use development in inner-north Canberra. The development is located adjacent to a tributary of Sullivan’s Creek which flows directly into Lake Burley Griffin. The developer collaborated with a local catchment management group to develop an artificial wetland adjacent to the site. This wetland was designed to improve the quality of stormwater flowing into the creek. This partnership both acknowledged the impact of consolidation on the quality of stormwater and also provided a valuable community education tool.

The developer funded most of the construction of the wetland and was acknowledged for this contribution. They also substantially recovered their investment through higher than expected property values of homes overlooking the wetland.

The following images explain how these strategies were implemented.
 

Fig 1. The wetland was designed in consultation with the local community to overcome concerns about such structures within close proximity to residential areas. The main concerns about the wetlands have been overcome through this process.
 

Fig 2. While the wetland itself has a limited capacity to improve water quality in the channel it does demonstrate the environmental benefit to the local community.
 

Fig. 3 The partnership between private developers and government is evident in this project. Contributors to the construction of the wetlands have been acknowledged and information about the broader context of wetland management has been explained.
 

 

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Key Issues

Benefits

Understanding the existing site ecology will significantly reduce unintended impacts.

• By adopting the appropriate management strategy (retain, regenerate, create) the public landscape can be designed around this strategy to maximise existing site ecology and promote best practice for a sustainable development
• By orienting houses to face the public landscaped areas the community can develop an ownership of both the amenity and the task of landscape revegetation. It also allows for surveillance of the open space and prevents other residents from using it inappropriately.

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Risks

• The investigation of the site's ecology might reveal high ecological values of parts of the site that significantly restrict the amount of developable space. This might require additional advice from architects and planners to explore different modes of development to achieve the desired yield.

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Savings

Early investigation of existing site qualities and adoption of the appropriate site management strategies will allow the developer to maximise the opportunities already present on the site and design a public landscape that meets sustainability targets.

• Significantly reduces risk of planning agencies and environmental management agencies requesting information after the development process has begun. This also reduces potential conflict with statutory authorities requiring this information.

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Costs

The initial cost of consultants in the feasibility and planning phases can be high with no apparent or immediate gain.

• The perception is that this information will limit development opportunities through the identification of endangered species and intact ecological communities.

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Barriers

Perception that an investigation of the site ecology will significantly impact on the capacity of the developer to maximise yield.

• Protection of vegetation can be perceived to be under valuing land that could otherwise be developed.

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Benchmarks

• Does the public landscape use WSUD principles?
• Does the public landscape increase the biodiversity of the site?
• Does the development trigger any relevant environmental protection legislation, for example, Threatened Species Acts, Soil Conservation Acts, EPBC Act (Cth)?

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Development phase actions

Feasibility

One of the most important elements of the feasibility phase is to develop an understanding of the site through a site analysis. Undertake a site analysis to determine the sites opportunities and constraints early on in the development process. This will assist in establishing and implementing the appropriate management approach with site ecology in mind, and help to inform and guide subsequent phases of the development process.
When conducting the site analysis, consider the following factors:

Flora and Fauna
Flora and fauna are important components of the ecosystem. A diversity of flora provides a potential food source and habitat necessary for the survival of many local animal species. Well designed urban developments often become a valuable source of shelter and food for local wildlife.

• Undertake a tree survey to establish if there are any trees or groups of trees that require protection under relevant tree protection legislation.
• Implement a weed management plan.
• Undertake a threatened species survey.
• Identify what native fauna appears to do well on the site.
• Identify what trees and vegetation can be retained for habitat. Even dead trees offer valuable nesting sites and food sources for local animals.
• Design into the public landscape potential to provide habitat niches – i.e. ponds to attract frogs and plants and shrubs that will attract birds.

Soil
Soil health is critical to determining future viability of the landscaped areas. Soil degradation resulting from poor planning can be costly and result in long term failure of the public landscape.

Consider the condition of the soil and the overall condition of the site:

• Test the chemical and mineral composition and structure of the soil
• Identify any signs of erosion, or the potential for erosion problems and evidence of contamination or pollutants.
• Determine if the site has salinity problems as this can impact plans for water management solutions on the site.

Hydrology
Planning and designing appropriate water sensitive strategies is important for conserving water, the prevention of flooding, water contamination, and minimising development impact on biodiversity.

• Identify any sources of surface or ground water flowing onto or through the site
• Determine the quality of the water, and potential for public landscapes to double as water treatment infrastructure
• Map the drainage profile? (eg: areas of concentrated run-off, ponding, flood prone)
• Consider the characteristics of downstream catchments, for example wetland, creek, constructed stormwater channel and their sensitivity to disturbance.

Case study: Kingston Foreshore

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Design

Landscape design should focus on creating a healthy vibrant environment for the end users of the site (both human and animal). In particular site ecology principles should be used in the design of open spaces, parks, and recreation areas.
Elements to consider in the design are:

Design ‘in’ site ecology

• Maximise the opportunity for flora and fauna – create spaces for habitat niches. Ensure housing lots provide enough space for establishing gardens so that the public landscapes form part of a larger ecosystem, rather than discrete islands of green
• Plants should provide both aesthetic and practical value. Include the most appropriate plants for the sites physical requirements. Take into consideration factors such as aspect, shade, seasonal and overall purpose
• Don’t use plants that are a local weed, even if they are permitted by local authorities
• Minimise excavation where possible and design using natural drainage patterns
• Incorporate environmental protection measures such as detention ponds, swales and silt traps into the landscape design to be retro-fitted after construction as part of the designed landscape.

Introduce water sensitive urban design (WSUD) strategies

• Design the landscape to manage water flow and develop water catchments that comply with WSUD principles and provide aesthetic value to the development
• Include any requirements for ongoing maintenance in the landscape plan to ensure the successful establishment of plants.

Management and public involvement

• Communicate to stakeholders, including the local community, the design intent and expected benefits of the development to the protection and enhancement of vegetation communities
• Encourage local communities to volunteer to help protect and enhance the site ecology of the development and surrounding areas.

Case study: City Edge, Majura Rise

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Construction

Construction is the bringing together the phases of feasibility, planning and design. The construction of public landscapes requires similar environmental protection measures to those of any other construction activity.

Consider the following points when constructing your public landscape:

Site Protection
Establish a vegetation protection plan prior to construction. Ensure that construction activity minimises impact on intact ecological sites.

• Use temporary fencing to manage on-site traffic, protect stock piles, vegetation and other features that are potentially impacted by construction traffic.
• Consider the siting of temporary protection of stockpiles and detention ponds that will be used for future public landscape areas.

Plant establishment

• Stagger construction activities based on the needs of the site ecology management approach.
• Plant major vegetation as early as possible so that they have reached a reasonable level of maturity once the project is complete
• Undertake regeneration and revegetation as early as possible as part of the construction program to manage disturbance caused by construction
• Vary plant container sizes and age of plants in the planting program.

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Completion

Ensure the designers intent by providing a continuity of management either through community involvement or long term management by the developer. This includes:

• Establish a maintenance period of up to five years
• Community education so as to preserve any sensitive areas and create stewardship
• Benchmark – critically assess the project. Develop an understanding of what was successful and why as well as areas for improvement

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