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5. Use goats for controlling weeds and creating firebreaks Goats will eat many weeds that are otherwise very diffcult to control like poison oak, for example. Goats can work in areas that are too steep for human crews. They don't start fires with sparks, nor require fossil fuels to get the job done, and goats can reduce the fuel load in a short period of time. The costs of renting a herd may be lower than the costs of the labor for weeding and disposing of the plant debris. ^ Consider renting a herd of goats. Ask for references of local landscapers who have used goats for controlling weeds or creating f rebreaks in our area. (The East Bay Regional Park District, City of Oakland and others employ goats for vegetation control.) ^ Use them with care as they eat desirable vegetation along with weeds: identify California natives and other vegetation that will need to be protected from the goats with temporary fences. Remove them from the area before they have a chance to overgraze. As the goats graze they reduce the fuel load, return nutrients to the soil and eliminate the need to haul off plant debris. 6. Use salvaged items & recycled content materials Salvaged materials are not remanufactured between uses. Finding and using them takes time and ingenuity but in the long run, salvaging conserves resources, can save money and adds interesting elements to the design. Recycled content materials such as plastic or composite lumber make very durable decks or raised garden beds that do not rot, crack or splinter. ^ Get creative and specify that hardscapes and other landscape structures be constructed with salvaged items. For example, use broken concrete for very attractive retaining walls and ground glass Gullet for beautiful walkways. ^ Find materials for reuse by contacting the CalMax website at www.ciwmb.ca.g_ov/CalMax or by visiting v~ww.StopWaste.Ore. ^ Specify the use of recycled content materials or those made from rapidly renewable resources. ^ Substitute compost blankets, berms and flter socks for plastic silt fencing. ^ Purchase biodiesel or biobased lubricants for your equipment. ^ Use sustainably harvested wood (FSC Certifed) if plastic or composite lumber is not appropriate. Use treated wood that does not contain chromium or arsenic for any application that specifes treated lumber. ^ Specify recycled aggregate (crushed concrete and asphalt) for backfll, road base or other uses. Lower maintenance costs can recover the added cost of plastic or composite lumber within a year. Compost provides superior erosion control to silt fencing and doesn't require disposal. Waste can be reduced, natural resources conserved, and markets for recycled products strengthened. Bay-Friendly landscapes offer many opportunities to reduce and recycle waste, both in the short term construction of the landscape and in the long term, by designing spaces for collection and storing recyclable materials. r ~- Ir '~~ 9Y ` ~ x 'y a,7g. u ' ~.. vl r 1 o i ; `?~~ r ,, ~°ar.. + : « ..cagy, _ ,~~~ Reused concrete makes attractive benches, retaining walls, and raised planting beds. 25 Garden shed made with salvaged -umber from deconstructed warehouses at Oakland Army Base.