In his book, “Natural Capitalism”, Paul Hawken (co-founder of Smith and Hawken, the wildly successful catalog specialty retailer of gardeners’ dreams), laid out a very compelling case for what has come to be known as the “triple bottom line”. The notion is that if a company generates profits, while doing what’s right for people and for the planet, it creates a sustainable and competitively advantageous organization.
Hawken’s book describes many examples of industries and business models that even ten years ago would not have been seriously considered as viable entities. With such factors as the volatility of energy prices, the diminishing fisheries, the dwindling natural resources and (whether it’s human-caused or not) the dramatic rise in average global temperatures, the concept of sustainability is moving out of academia and onto the P&L statement.
Another seminal tome on the subject of sustainability is “Collapse” by Jared Diamond. This author examines the correlation of societal demise with a culture’s philosophies and practices regarding resource utilization and protection. Not surprisingly, Diamond finds ample evidence that shows how cultures who consume resources without sufficient efforts to replenish them have two choices: find rich new territory, or, failing that, simply die off. Today, our territorial options are extraterrestrial, and as yet out of reach.
I’d like to think it’s not too late to apply the massive brainpower of our brightest minds towards the goal of creating sustainable systems that will allow a few more generations of humans to enjoy this tiny blue ball in space. I had the opportunity to talk with one such bright mind recently.
Justin Fischbeck is President of Helix Environmental Construction Group, Inc., a subsidiary of Helix Environmental Planning. The parent company was founded over twenty years ago, and has grown to be the preeminent environmental planning and consulting firm in San Diego county, serving public agencies and private companies engaged in developing land throughout the state. Their landscape construction company was created ten years ago to apply specific knowledge of biological systems in the process of mitigating the damage development does. Through their efforts, habitats have been protected and restored at a greater rate than development has damaged them. Justin’s company is a prime example of how a company might thrive by keeping an eye on that “triple bottom line”, so I was curious about what he saw for the future.
“We see a few obvious trends”, Justin responded. “One is water conservation. There will be double digit reductions in available water for our region next year, and likely into the years beyond. More and more of our landscape construction company business is converting existing properties from high water consumption plant material to drought-tolerant species that are either native, or exotic yet compatible with our regional eco-system.”
“Why do they come to you?” I asked. “Isn’t it pretty easy to swap out plants?”
“Actually, no” Justin replied. “It takes knowledge of the soil, drainage and climate, as well as the viability and methods of caring for the species that might be best to use. Each micro-ecosystem within our region can require different approaches. For example, coastal areas are much different than locations only a few miles inland. Our company has specialized for years in the expertise required.”
“Do you have biologists on staff?” I asked.
“Yes,” Justin replied. “I’m a biologist, and we have a fully-staffed biology department as well as landscape architects, in addition to the construction team who are specifically trained in drought-tolerant plants and methods. We also provide water audits to determine the return on investment for converting their landscape.”
“So what else do you see for our future?” I pursued. Drought seemed a pretty safe prediction, given what we are experiencing in lower levels of snow-pack, receding glaciers and reduced rainfall in general.
Justin responded, “As it relates to environment, I think we’re going to see a larger consensus around conservation and recycling. And with large planned communities having saturated the available land, there’s going to be more urban redevelopment that includes such sustainable practices as energy co-generation and access to mass transit.”
“How will that affect your business?” I asked.
“We’re already seeing more opportunities to help create redeveloped communities that use landscape design which reduces energy and water use, but increases quality of living”, he said. “Just because there isn’t a lawn sucking up huge amounts of water doesn’t mean that the floral environment in a community is barren or dry. Green comes in many forms, and there are lots of drought-tolerant choices to beautify homes, commercial districts, infrastructure projects, parks, etc.”
Helix Environmental Construction Group, along with its parent company, is a local example of Hawken’s “natural capitalism”. I have a hunch we’re going to see a proliferation of similar sustainable strategies in our region, known worldwide for our propensity to innovate.