The Sustainable Sites Initiative recently released the nation’s first rating system for the design, construction and maintenance of sustainable landscapes, with or without buildings. The Initiative’s rating system represents four years of work from dozens of the country’s leading sustainability experts, scientists and design professionals, as well as public input from hundreds of individuals and dozens of organizations to create this essential missing link in green design.

Although the original intent is a good one – protecting the quality, quantity and availability of water both for people and the natural environment – the State’s rules regarding water rights have, in a sense, overcomplicated and prevented some attempts at water conservation. Just a little too late for our project, the Department of Ecology recently clarified it’s stance on rainwater collection with a new policy, released in October 2009.