Download EcologicalDesign101.agenda.05-29-08

Ecological Design 101
American Ecological Engineering Society
2008 Annual Conference, Blacksburg, Virginia
June 9-10, 2008
Ecological Design 101 will explore key concepts in the practice of ecological
design. What is essential knowledge and experience for ecological designers?
What is unique about ecological design and central to doing it well? How can we
help designers be better ecologists and ecologists be better designers, and all of
us work well together to build better projects?
AEES is in the process of developing a program to certify practitioners
of Ecological Design. As part of that process, the Society will develop and
present workshops to serve those seeking certification. The Ecological Design
101 workshop being offered as a part of the AEES conference in June is a first
step toward the development of those workshops.
Over the last year, the AEES certification committee has generated extensive
discussions around the topic of what the essential, core, or unique aspects of
ecological design and engineering might be. Taking this workshop will be a way
to participate in and contribute to that discussion.
On Monday afternoon we’ll tour local Blacksburg examples of ecological design
projects and opportunities. On Tuesday, the workshop will begin with
presentations and discussions led by practitioners who are ecologists,
engineers, and designers. Given the different backgrounds and values these
disciplines have, these discussions will be organized around the theme of "what
ecologists wish designers knew about ecology," and visa versa. It should
stimulate a lively discussion around the similarities and differences of the
disciplines we are trying to merge into a practice of ecological design.
These discussions will be followed by a series of presentations of case studies
and applications of principles in ecological design, with a special emphasis on
how various ecological processes can become the design criteria for specific
projects.
We'll end the day with a wide ranging panel and audience discussion of the
workshop's topics, with an eye toward the next steps AEES should take.
5-19-08
Agenda
Monday, June 9, 2008
11:00 Ecological design and AEES’s Certificate in Ecological Design
program [Mattlock]
12:00 Box lunch
1:00 Field trip (local Blacksburg examples of ecological design and
problem sites where ecological design could provide a solution)
Tuesday, June 10
8:30
9:15
Ecology, Engineering, Design—Introduction to the Workshop
[Patterson]
Ecological processes and an ecologist’s predilections and priorities
[Toms]
10:00 Break
10:15 Engineering design process, predilections and priorities [Franks]
11:00 Landscape architect’s design process, predilections and priorities
[Kim]
11:45 Lunch
1:00
1:45
2:30
Case studies in designing ecological services (Matlock)
Watershed-sensitive site design [Bork]
Self-organization [Kangas]
3:15
Break
3:30
Beyond self-design--unit processes in ecological engineering
[Horne]
Panel discussion: Key concepts and components of ecological
design and an ecological design education [workshop participants
and all speakers]
Adjourn
4:15
5:00
5-19-08
Speaker Bios
Dean Bork, MLA, ASLA
Associate Professor, Landscape Architecture
Virginia Tech University
Dean R. Bork is a certified Landscape Architect in the Commonwealth of
Virginia (#204 Prof. Bork’s professional practice experience includes
planning, design and construction inspection for a variety of park, golf course
and residential development projects. Several of the public open space
projects integrate flood abatement and stormwater storage and treatment
with active recreational uses. Professor Bork teaches a site engineering
course specifically focused on the integration of distributed stormwater
management practices (LID) in site planning and design as well as design
studios focusing on site planning and landscape design. His recent, and
ongoing, work with graduate students includes projects focused on daylighting of urban streams, preservation and restoration of urban riparian
forests, ecologically sensitive housing development, sustainability standards
for open space planning and design, and home owner attitudes toward LID
practices. Dean holds a Bachelor of Science degree in landscape architecture
from the University of Wisconsin – Madison, and a Master of Landscape
Architecture degree from Louisiana State University.
Paul Frank
Associate Engineer
CH2MHILL
Mr. Frank is an engineer with more than eight years of experience in the
research, design, management, and operation of natural treatment systems,
primarily constructed wetlands for treatment of a variety of wastewaters. His
expertise includes multiple tools for modeling water quality, hydraulics, and
hydrology of aquatic ecosystems. In addition, he has experience in the field
of fluvial geomorphology and the design of stream and other riparian
ecosystem restoration projects. Current assignments include river channel or
wetland design projects in his home state of California, as well as in Arizona,
Texas, Italy, and Singapore.
Alex Horne, PhD
Professor Emeritus, Civil and Environmental Engineering
University of California, Berkeley
Dr. Alex Horne is Professor Emeritus of Ecological Engineering at the
Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering at the University of
California, Berkeley. His teaching and research focuses on aquatic
ecosystems ranging from Antarctic oceans to freshwater lakes and reservoirs.
5-19-08
Specific topics have included the in situ measurement of toxic and
biostimulatory effects of highly-treated wastewaters and the effects of heavy
metals, oil spills, chlorinated wastewaters, and selenium in estuaries, rivers,
wetlands, lakes, reservoirs, and oceans. He has written over 225 publications
and the popular undergraduate textbook, Limnology. In addition to his
research, Dr. Horne has been involved in the design of over 20,000 acres of
wetlands combining water treatment, wildlife habitat enhancement, and
aesthetics.
Patrick Kangas, PhD
Associate Professor
Department of Environmental Science and Technology
University of Maryland, College Park
Dr. Patrick Kangas is a systems ecologist with interests in ecological
engineering, tropical sustainable development and general ecology. He
received his BS from Kent State University in Biology, his MS from the
University of Oklahoma in Botany and Ecology and his PhD in Environmental
Engineering Sciences from the University of Florida. After graduating from
Florida, Dr. Kangas took a position in the Biology Department of Eastern
Michigan University and taught there for 11 years. In 1990 he moved to the
University of Maryland where he is an Associate Professor in the
Environmental Science and Technology Department. He has published more
than 50 papers, book chapters and contract reports on a variety of
environmental subjects, including the text Ecological Engineering: Principles
and Practices.
Mentai Kim
Associate Professor, Landscape Architecture
Virginia Tech University
Dr. Kim is an associate professor of Landscape Architecture in the
School of Architecture + Design at Virginia Tech. He received Master
of Landscape Architecture and Ph.D. in Environmental Planning from the
University of California at Berkeley. He studied ecological design
extensively while at Berkeley. His current teaching and research
interests include healing space design, sustainable design and
planning, and ecological design and planning. He is a LEED Accredited
Professional.
Marty Matlock, PhD, PE
Associate Professor
Biological and Agricultural Engineering Department
University of Arkansas
5-19-08
Dr. Marty Matlock is an associate professor in the Ecological Engineering
Group of the Biological and Agricultural Engineering Department at the
University of Arkansas. He is a Certified Senior Ecologist with the Ecological
Society of America, and a Registered Professional Engineer. Matlock is also
Director of the Center for Agricultural and Rural Sustainability. He works with
municipal, state, and federal agencies, as well as non-profit organizations to
better understand and manage ecological services in Arkansas and the
region. Matlock's partnership with the UA Community Design Center has
resulted in more than a dozen national and international design awards for
eco-sensitive community design. Matlock serves as technical advisor on three
national sustainability committees, has published more than 20 peerreviewed manuscripts, eight book chapters, and numerous articles on
measuring and designing sustainable systems.
Steve Patterson, PhD
Restoration Ecologist
Bio x Design
Dr. Steve Patterson is a restoration ecologist who has been conducting and
managing biological studies for over 25 years. His company, Bio by Design,
specializes in ecological restoration and ecosystem design. Steve's recent
work applies his understanding of natural ecological processes to the
development of ecologically-engineered cultured ecologies for the
improvement of water quality and ecosystem function. Throughout his
career, Dr. Patterson has had a special interest in the integration of ecology
and design, and has organized workshops and charrettes on that topic in a
variety of venues.
Christina Toms
Wetlands and Water Resources
Christina Toms is an Ecological Engineer in San Rafael, CA. She has over 8
years of professional and educational experience in the management,
enhancement, and restoration of a wide variety of aquatic ecosystems, from
tidal marshes to coastal lagoons to mountain streams. She also specializes in
treatment wetland design and providing CEQA/NEPA support for projects that
enhance coastal environments. Ms. Toms' research experience includes
analyses of eutrophic drinking water reservoirs, stormwater and wastewater
treatment wetlands, and restored river channels throughout California. She
has a BS in Biological Resources Engineering from the University of
Maryland-College Park and an MS in Civil and Environmental Engineering
from the University of California-Berkeley. She is very proud to be an AEES
member almost since the group's inception.
5-19-08
Field Trip Site Information
The Village at Tom's Creek
This is a subdivision in Blacksburg that was designed to promote a
"village" feel (Parcel ID: 080659). There is a range of housing
size/cost and the buildings are clustered. Roughly half of the
~100-ac site was left untouched as green space. The buildings are
mostly on the hilltops and the riparian areas were left as untouched
as possible. There are walking and biking trails throughout the
development. Curb and gutter are minimal. Given the clay subsoils
and the steep slopes, the engineering firm (Gay and Neel, then Gay
and Keessee) did the best they could to incorporate LID practices and
principles into the design. Information about the development is
available at the following web sites:
http://www.villageattomscreek.com/area.html
http://www.progressstreet.com/village.htm
http://www.gayandneel.com/village.asp
Shadow Lake Village
Shadow Lake Village is a co-housing community not far from the
Village at TC (Parcel ID: 080125). This development was also
clustered and most of the site was left untouched. The site is 33
acres and only 5 acres are developed. All parking is on the outside
of the neighborhood, there are no manicured lawns, and the landscaping is pretty
minimal.
Wetlands Restoration at Heritage Park
Formerly the Brown Farm, Heritage Park is a large tract of land owned
by the Town of Blacksburg (Parcel ID: 002563 - site on north end of
property). Lee Daniels, a soil scientist at VT who will be leading
the wetland mitigation workshop, will be taking his group and we will meet with him
there. Lee has used this site for his wetland soils class and has helped out with some
restoration efforts.
Monitored LID practices
Two LID stormwater retrofits in Blacksburg (Parcel ID:
070030) are being monitored by Tess Wynne. One is standard bioretention and the other
is an infiltration trench with "structural soil". Structural soil was
designed by the horticulture folks at Cornell to provide rooting
space for urban trees under pavement. It is basically uniform gravel
with topsoil "glued" to it using a polyacrylamide gel. The idea is
5-19-08
that the material can be compacted and used for subgrade (2 ft deep
as opposed to 6 inches) while still allowing root penetration and
nutrient and water storage.We're still monitoring the bioretention
cell, but we have stopped at the infiltration trench, for a host of
reasons.
Wong Park
Wong Park is also a town park (Parcel ID: 021250). It has a good
example of a poor stormwater management practice (dry detention pond
with really ugly outflow structure) and LID practices (permeable
pavement, bioretention). The town engineer will meet us here to
talk about the site.
Blacksburg has a good online GIS system with aerial photos (once you
zoom in enough). If you use the parcel numbers above, you can locate
all of these sites: http://arcims2.webgis.net/blacksburg/default.asp
5-19-08