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<br />TechnicaI Notes
<br />entire watershed. Communities may need to make
<br />ee compost and technical assistance available to
<br />achieve wider restoration of compacted soils in the
<br />urban landscape.
<br />Summary
<br />While the initial research on compost amended
<br />soils is promising, more research and demonstration
<br />are needed to more precisely define the stormwater
<br />management benefits of the practice. In particular,
<br />paired monitoring of the runoff and pollutant load from
<br />amended and unamended lawns should be a high
<br />priority. Further long term research is also needed to
<br />determine how long the benefits of compost amend-
<br />ments persist. For example, are compost amendments
<br />only needed once, or must they be repeated as the
<br />compost decomposes? What kind of lawn mainte-
<br />nance practices are needed to maintain the benefits of
<br />amended lawns? How should the compost amendment
<br />practice be adapted to suit conditions in other climatic
<br />regions of the country?
<br />Still, perhaps the greatest property of compost
<br />amendment is its potential to develop into a true
<br />homeowner management practice, particularly if a
<br />more simplified version can be developed. A home-
<br />owner gets the benefit of a better yard, and possibly a
<br />better watershed, for simply changing how he or she
<br />invests in lawn practices. —TRS
<br />Editor's Note: Thanks are extended to David McDonald,
<br />Phil Cohen and Chris Smith for their helpful review of
<br />an earlier draft of this note. Also, 1 plan to experiment
<br />with compost amendments to restore the soils on my
<br />own worn-out lawn. I'll let you know how it works out.
<br />Contacts:
<br />Phil Cohen: City of Redmond Public Works
<br />(206) -556 -2815
<br />David McDonald: Seattle Public Utilities
<br />(206)- 684 -7650
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<br />References:
<br />Amended With Compost. MS thesis. College
<br />of Engineering. University of Washington.
<br />Seattle, WA
<br />Kolsti, K, S. Burges, and B. Jensen. 1995. "Hydro-
<br />logic Response of Residential -scale Lawns on
<br />Till Containing Various Amounts of Compost
<br />Amendment." Water Resources Technical
<br />Report No. 147. University of Washington,
<br />Dept of Civil Engineering. Seattle, WA.
<br />Konrad, C., B. Jensen, S. Burges, and L. Reinelt.
<br />1995. Onsite Residential Stormwater Man -
<br />agement Alternatives. Center for Urban Water
<br />Resources Management. University of Wash-
<br />ington. Seattle, WA.
<br />Landschoot, P. 1996. Using Compost to Improve
<br />Turf Performance. Pennsylvania State Uni-
<br />versity Cooperative Extension. University
<br />Park, PA.
<br />Legg, A. R. Bannerman, and J. Panuska. 1996.
<br />"Variation in the Relation of Rainfall to Run-
<br />off From Residential Lawns in Madison, Wis-
<br />consin, July and August, 1995." U.S. Geologi-
<br />cal Survey Water Resources Investigation
<br />Report 96 -4194. With the Wisconsin Depart-
<br />ment of Natural Resources. Madison, WI.
<br />Lichter, J. and P. Lindsay. 1994. "Soil Compaction
<br />and Site Construction: Assessment and Case
<br />Studies." pp. 126 -130 in The Landscape Be-
<br />low Ground. Proceedings of International
<br />Workshop on Tree Root Development in Ur-
<br />ban Soils. International Society of
<br />Arboriculture. Champaign, Illinois.
<br />McDonald, D. 1999. Ecologically Sound Lawn
<br />Care for the Pacific Northwest: Findings From
<br />Scientific Literature and Recommendations
<br />From Turf Professionals (draft). City of Seattle
<br />Public Utilities.
<br />Patterson, J. and C. Bates. 1994. "Long -term, Light-
<br />weight Aggregate Performance as Soil Amend-
<br />ments." pp. 149 -156. In The Landscape Below
<br />Ground. Proceedings of International Work-
<br />shop on Tree Root Development in Urban
<br />Soils. International Society of Arboriculture.
<br />Champaign, Illinois.
<br />Chollak, T. and Rosenfeld, R. 1998. Guidelines for
<br />Landscaping with Compost - amended Soils. Pre-
<br />pared for City of Redmond Public Works.
<br />Redmond, WA. 60 pp. available at http: //
<br />depts.washington.edu/cuwrm/
<br />Harrison, B, C. Henry. M. Grey and D. Xue. 1996. Field
<br />Test of Compost Amendment to Reduce Nutrient
<br />Runoff. University of Washington. College of
<br />Forest Resources.
<br />Hielema, E. 1999. Hydrologic Simulation of the
<br />Klahanie Catchment, King County, Washington,
<br />With and Without a Landscape Consisting of Soil
<br />Randrup, T. 1998. "Soil Compaction in and Con-
<br />struction Sites." pp.
<br />Land-
<br />scape Below Ground. II. Proceedings of Inter-
<br />national Workshop on Tree Root Develop-
<br />ment in Urban Soils. International Society of
<br />Arboriculture. Champaign, Illinois.
<br />Rolf, K. 1994. "Soil Compaction and Loosening
<br />Effects on Soil Physics and Tree Growth." pp.
<br />131 -146 in The Landscape Below Ground.
<br />Proceedings of International Workshop on
<br />Tree Root Development in Urban Soils. Inter-
<br />national Society of Arboriculture. Champaign,
<br />Illinois.
<br />Watershed Protection Techniques Vol. 3, No. 2 January 2000
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