A switch to plants that need less watering will save Cal State University Long Beach thousands of dollars and help create a more sustainable and eco-friendly campus.
The ongoing landscaping project at CSULB plans to bring drought-resistant plants to areas undergoing renovation, such as the Liberal Arts buildings on upper campus.
“A lot of people have this idea that water-saving plant material has to be cacti,” said Brian McKinnon, the Facilities Management manager of Grounds and Landscape Services.
Flowering and colorful plants native to Australia, Arizona and Nevada are able to thrive at CSULB with the proper irrigation, McKinnon said.
Jessica Faren, a freshman English education student, said she enjoys taking advantage of all the grass and trees on campus.
“I think it is a good idea to bring these plants to campus because it not only maintains a beautiful atmosphere, but conserves water during this drought.” Said Faren.
The physical planning and facilities management department is working on a sustainable landscape conversion plan that could save 19 million gallons of water annually, said Paul Wingco, the Energy and Sustainability Manager of Facilities Management.
“Drought-resistant landscaping is sustainable, uses less water, less fertilizer, can be labor saving, [with] reduced fuel usage and emissions from lawn mowing equipment,” Wingco said.
Wingco said via email that 50 to 60 percent of CSULB’s annual water consumption budget is used on landscaping. He said roughly $300,000 a year is spent on watering landscaping.
CSULB’s goal is to reduce its water consumption 20 percent by the year 2020, Wingco said.
As part of CSULB’s goal to conserve water, the drought-resistant plant project has been in the works since 2012 and will be a continual process as various parts of campus undergo renovation.
Facilities management is seeking funds from the Cal State University Chancellor’s office and Long Beach water department for the project.
Due to budgetary restraints, installation of drought-resistant plants occurs only during larger renovation projects on campus, McKinnon said. The grounds budget for plant material is approximately $31,000 per year.
Drought-resistant plants were most recently installed during the renovation of the quad outside the University Art Museum on lower campus.
CSULB is in the process of switching from traditional spray heads to “smart controller” irrigation. This would use a central system that analyzes current weather condition and waters plants accordingly.
McKinnon said CSULB is also switching to drip irrigation systems that deliver water to the base root of plants, rather than spraying water over an entire plot.
“So much water is vaporized when sprayed into the air by traditional sprinkler systems,” McKinnon said.
Rats and squirrels biting into the polyvinyl tubing of the drip irrigation systems is a problem that Grounds and Landscaping Services is facing because it causes flooding and pressure problems. McKinnon said the only current solution is to use the slightly more invasive and more expensive PVC tubing instead because that is more durable.
The Earl Burns Miller Japanese Garden at CSULB is working in conjunction with the City of Long Beach to retroactively replace old sprinkler heads with sprinkler heads that the city provides. The filtration system in the garden is also being updated to filter and utilize pond water more efficiently.
Austin Fowler, a freshman communications major, said that having a lush campus makes it a beautiful learning environment.
“If the school wants to weigh the price of the water used on normal plants compared to the price of installing drought resistant plants, good for them,” Fowler said. “I think it’s worth is having such a green campus.”