9 Plants for Green Infrastructure Projects
Learning Objectives
- Describe plants suitable for green infrastructure projects.
The basic infrastructure that supplies a plant with water and food is made up of roots, stems, and leaves. By comparison, an infrastructure that supplies a community with drinking water is made up of a network of parts that include wells, reservoirs, water mains and smaller pipes. Other familiar examples of infrastructure found in communities are transportation, communications, and electrical networks. These constructed networks are often called grey infrastructure. In nature, networks of rivers, streams, lakes, and oceans make up a natural infrastructure that supports the function of ecosystems and the plants and animals that live there. Where human activities lead to the loss of ecosystems and biodiversity, green infrastructure can be planned and managed to conserve ecosystem services and reduce negative environmental impacts. Green infrastructure is made up of vegetation, soils, and bioengineered technologies that provide communities with a wide range of environmental, social, and economic benefits. When connected in a larger framework of natural and urban forests, habitats, streams and rivers, constructed wetlands and floodplains, as well as parks, residential yards, edible landscapes, community gardens, green roofs, green walls, bioswales, and rain gardens, a green infrastructure network is created.
Traditional stormwater infrastructure that collects, drains and discharges water from sites as quickly as possible can increase the potential for flash flooding, pollution, and scouring damage downstream. Sealed surfaces like rooftops, parking lots, and roads accelerate surface water runoff and prevent infiltration into soil for cleansing, groundwater recharge, and plant use. In contrast, green infrastructure for stormwater management mimics natural landscapes that intercept, retain, absorb, filter, and slowly release stormwater by evapotranspiration and controlled runoff. Combinations of green infrastructure components such as green roofs, green walls, bioswales, rain gardens, and permeable paving reduce the quantity and improve the quality of stormwater before its release from a site. Read more about the potential benefits of green infrastructure available at Introduction to Green Infrastructure[PDF][New Tab].
Green infrastructure is designed to optimize the beneficial services provided by plants. Plants and their processes of photosynthesis, water uptake, and respiration contribute to:
- oxygen production and carbon sequestration,
- pollution removal from air, soil, and water,
- flood control, and groundwater and stormwater management,
- surface shading and cooling of air temperature by evapotranspiration, and
- wildlife and pollinator habitat, and green space for human well being.
Plants for green infrastructure projects are often locally available native species, but not always. Both native and non-native plants are us