Staying Current By Tom Delaney Image above ©istockphoto.com/Veni
An Opportunity to Help Set a Green Industry Standard
E
ver since I have been involved with associations and busi- nesses, I have heard the term "fiduciary responsibility." Granted, it usually involves financial responsibilities, but it
has a broader reach if you think of it from the perspective of act- ing at all times for the benefit and interest of another — in this case your business and our industry. As the demand on water resources and the importance of
water use efficiency grows, water agencies, regulators, land own- ers, landscape managers, and others are calling for a standardized process to determine landscape water supply and demands to ad- dress local, regional and national objectives. The American Soci- ety of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) — recognized worldwide as a standards-developing organization for food, agricultural, and biological systems — has initiated a project to develop a new standard, S623, Standardized Procedure for De- termining Available Water for Landscapes and Estimating Land-
scape Water Use. More importantly, ASABE is inviting those with interest and expertise in the subject matter to participate in the project. Unlike the EPA WaterSense landscape turf re- duction proposal, this standard will be based on science and landscape location.
The new document will standardize the ways in which both the available water resources and the irrigation requirements are quantified for landscape purposes.
The new document will standardize the ways in which both
the available water resources and the irrigation requirements are quantified for landscape purposes. Conformance to ASABE standards is voluntary — except where required by state, provincial, or other governmental requirements — and the documents are developed by consensus in accordance with pro- cedures approved by the American National Standards Institute. There is a good chance we will see this standard adopted by the International Code Council as a model code to be used by your local officials. So, here's an opportunity to exercise your "fiduciary respon-
sibility" and get involved in something that will no doubt have an impact on our industry and your business. For information about, or to participate in the development of, this ASABE standard, contact Travis Tsunemori at 269-932-7009 or trav- ist@asabe.org.
PLANET and our new Irrigation & Water Management Specialty Group, along with other associations such as the Irri- gation Association, hope to play an important role in ASABE's effort. We encourage our members and all landscape and lawn care professionals to participate in the development of this stan- dard. Make this the year you choose to be proactive and help, wherever possible, to shape and not be shaped by the outcomes of the issues facing the green industry.
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Tom Delaney is director of government affairs for the Professional Landcare Network (PLANET).
30 Landscape and Irrigation March 2012 www.landscapeirrigation.com
