Environmental Stewardship Regional Practices

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Low impact development (LID) is another land use principle that promotes sustainable development by minimizing the changes to vegetation, soils and drainage patterns. Local governments like Huntersville, North Carolina and regions such as the Puget Sound area in Washington serve as examples for integrating LID ordinances into planning and zoning decisions. These locations have been encouraged by their regional development organizations, the Centralina Council of Governments and the Puget Sound Regional Council, to promote sustainable development through sensible land use practices.

Low impact development practices involve land use decisions and also improve water quality by reducing sediment loads and controlling the volume and rate of storm water runoff. Just like clustered or mixed-use neighborhoods, LID neighborhoods typically feature compact development alongside open space. However, LID open spaces are naturally contoured areas where rainwater already flows, leaving drainage patterns relatively unaltered by new housing and commercial development. This practice decreases construction costs by minimizing the time and labor involved in clearing, grading and re-landscaping new development sites.

Existing homes, commercial buildings and entire housing additions can also use LID practices to improve property drainage and restore natural patterns of water movement. These practices include creating open grass swales next to roads and driveways where runoff will be retained and filtered or using hardy and attractive native plants to establish rain gardens in low spots or near gutter downspouts. Businesses and public buildings can use pervious (porous) pavements for parking lots, driveways and sidewalks as a cost-effective way to allow rain to filter through the paved surface and into the soil, rather than flowing into storm sewers.

Using low impact development to guide land use decisions ensures continued quality of living for residents and wildlife by improving water quality and protecting drinking water sources. Undeveloped drainage corridors can serve as habitats for wildlife. In addition, open spaces and landscaping enhance a neighborhood's attractiveness and allow towns to spend less money creating and maintaining storm sewer systems. While single jurisdictions make a difference in protecting land and water quality by adopting LID ordinances, regional cooperation to develop uniform regulations like that around Puget Sound in Washington can have an even larger positive impact on economic development coordination and resource conservation.

Centralina Council of Governments 1300 Baxter Street, Ste 450 Charlotte, NC 28204 Tel: 704.372.2416 Fax: 704.347.4710 http://www.centralina.org/

Puget Sound Regional Council 1011 Western Ave, Suite 500 Seattle, WA 98104 Tel: 206.464.7090 Fax: 206.587.4825 http://www.psrc.org/