| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 65.54 |
| Liaison | C Jane Hagen |
| Submission Date | Sept. 3, 2024 |
Virginia Commonwealth University
OP-9: Landscape Management
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.00 / 2.00 |
C Jane
Hagen Sustainability Data Analyst Sustainability |
Total campus area:
Figures required to calculate the total area of managed grounds:
| Area (double-counting is not allowed) | |
| Area managed organically, without the use of inorganic fertilizers and chemical pesticides, fungicides and herbicides | 0 Acres |
| Area managed in accordance with an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program that uses selected chemicals only when needed | 308 Acres |
| Area managed using conventional, chemical-based landscape management practices | 0 Acres |
| Total area of managed grounds | 308 Acres |
If the total area of managed grounds is less than the total campus area, provide:
VCU's area of of operations (footprint) is 308 acres. This is the area in which Grounds has some maintenance responsibility. It includes building footprints (~90 acres) and other impervious surfaces like sidewalks, parking lots and streets that are regularly maintained even if impervious. Our area of operations includes the Monroe Park campus, Medical Campus, future Athletic Village properties, and the Rice Rivers Center. It excludes "land assigned to academic units for instructional or research purposes, agricultural land, forests, or land that is part of the campus’ real estate portfolio but is not maintained by the grounds department."
Maintenance activities within that footprint range from horticulture tasks to litter collection, graffiti removal, snow removal, hardscape maintenance, and other tasks.
Organic program
If reporting an organic program, provide:
Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program
If reporting an IPM program, provide:
A brief description of the IPM program:
VCU's campus grounds are managed using the principles of integrated pest management to the best of our ability and taking into consideration the challenges we face in our urban landscape.
Action thresholds: We do not have formal action thresholds but do not take any pest control actions until there is a adverse impact on plant health or economic damage.
Monitoring and Identifying Pests: We monitor for plant pests and disease to the best of our staffing ability. Some monitoring does happen through established priority monitoring. Other pests and diseases are identified incidentally as we complete scheduled maintenance.
Prevention: In our urban landscape, we can't always fix the cultural issues that stress plants and predispose them to pests and disease but we try to influence design choices that minimize cultural problems in the future. We also allow landscapes to adapt. Plants that do not thrive are replaced with plants better suited to site conditions. Smart irrigation systems are used to reduce plant stress associated with insufficient or excessive irrigation.
Control: We use mulch and employ pre-emergent herbicides to suppress weed seed germination and reduce post-emergent herbicide use but still must apply post-emergent herbicides in turf, ornamental beds and hardscapes throughout campus when prevention methods are no longer effective. We do some preventive and least toxic applications of horticultural oil to suppress insect pests before their populations impact plant health. We use systemic insecticides rather than contact insecticides whenever possible and do not employ many broad spectrum pesticides. We continue to test and evaluate effective, less risky pest controls including organic products and have used biorational fungicides and biological controls for pest and disease management on campus.
Optional Fields
A brief description of the institution's approach to hydrology and water use:
A brief description of the institution's approach to landscape materials management and waste minimization:
A brief description of the institution's approach to energy-efficient landscape design:
A brief description of other sustainable landscape management practices employed by the institution:
Website URL where information about the institution’s sustainable landscape management program is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Sections of this information were provided by Paul Thrift, VCU's Superintendent of Grounds
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.