DeSantis Landscapes, a preeminent Oregon impact partner on environmental health and landscape best practices, has implemented ambitious water stewardship standards across its portfolio to address the region’s environmental challenges.
“To be green, you have to do green well,” says company president Dean DeSantis, a 2021 recipient of Lawn & Landscape magazine’s Industry Leadership Award for his commitment to environmental responsibility. And doing green well starts by respecting nature, protecting the health of the soil, and stepping up to water stewardship.
We all know that we pay more if we use more. So, changing the way we use water is where smart technology comes in.
Smart, an acronym for “self-monitoring analysis and reporting technology”, is not autonomous. Unlike artificial intelligence, smart technology only responds when people use it. And it only saves money when people are trained to use it well.
A few years ago, we partnered with Weathermatic, a web-connected, weather-based technology platform that allows us to control and manage complex irrigation challenges across multiple properties. The results are impressive. We’re finding that smart water is an investment that delivers benefits beyond cost savings. These include, but are not limited to:
• Reductions in waste and water use, and increased system efficiency
• Water performance audits and real time weather data that tracks variables for precipitation, soil type, sun and shade, for greater zone accuracy
• Decreased risk to plant and soil health from drought and extreme heat
• Improved landscape and ecosystem performance and ground water quality
• Implementing smart water technology can be a qualifier for tax incentives
• Implementing smart water technology can meet LEED green building certification criteria
It has never been more important to do more with less. As the Pacific Northwest’s water supply and its soil health face increasing risk, DeSantis will continue to put environmental priorities at the center of its decision making.
With this commitment, we are taking sustainability to the next level; implementing water action plans, using minimally toxic approaches, and identifying new opportunities to help our clients’ landscapes adapt and flourish in the face of change.
To learn more about DeSantis Landscapes award-winning approach, go to: https://www.lawnandlandscape.com/article/leading-through-teamwork/
