Bay-Friendly Basics
Bay-Friendly Basics are nine fundamental steps for creating a healthy garden or landscape that saves water and reduces waste. Many jurisdictions in Alameda County require certain landscape construction projects to meet the Bay-Friendly Basics requirements. Even if local regulations don't require your project to be Bay-Friendly, these practices make good sense for almost all landscape projects.
Bay-Friendly Basics Downloads
- Project design teams and applicants for permitted projects: Download the Bay-Friendly Basics Checklist
- City/County plan check and inspection staff: Download the Bay-Friendly Basics Verification Key for guidance on verifying measures in the checklist
2015 WELO Update
- In July 2015, California approved revisions to the Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance. StopWaste has developed a WELO Tool Kit to help local public agencies streamline WELO enforcement.
More Resources
The Bay-Friendly Basics Checklist references these publications:
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Sample Waste Management Plan for recycling construction and demolition (C&D) materials
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California Native Plants for the Garden—a book by Carol Bornstein et al.
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U.S. Composting Council—See in particular their explanation of their Seal of Testing Assurance (STA) and list of participating producers
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Don’t Plant a Pest brochures by the California Invasive Plant Council (Cal-IPC)
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Easy Lawns, Low Maintenance Native Grasses for Gardeners Everywhere—a book by Brooklyn Botanic Garden Publications
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Estimating Water Requirements of Landscape Plantings: The Landscape Coefficient Method—a brochure from the University of California, Agricultural and Natural Resources
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Plants and Landscapes for Summer Dry Climates—a book from East Bay Municipal Utility District
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Western Garden Book—by the editors of Sunset Magazine