Stormwater World Episode 028: Nature Ignores Design that Ignores Nature! with Tom Mortensen, PLA, ASLA from raSmith Did you know that this podcast is produced by Digital Stormwater? Digital Stormwater B2B Visibility & Digital Marketing, making a difference in stormwater 1 click at a time! They do all things digital. Check them out at DigitalStormwater.com because the best-known beats best every time. Key Points Discussed [00:00:00] - Introduction "Engineers do want to very efficiently get to a solution, which I totally understand and respect." - Tom Mortensen"I work as this liaison between the right brain, left brain, construct and design." - Tom Mortensen [00:01:00] - Digital Stormwater Overview Services offered: Social media management, Google, LinkedIn, and meta ads, SEO and content creation, website builds and updates, AI automations, consulting, and more. [00:02:00] - Guest Introduction "Tom Mortensen has over 35 years of experience in site design, landscape architecture, and related design and construction in the construction professions." - TyTom’s experience includes work with the U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service, Boy Scouts of America, Native American Tribes, and the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs. [00:03:00] - Rainfall Integration and Stormwater Management "Rainfall integration, which is also known as stormwater management." - Tom MortensenDiscussion on green infrastructure and its early challenges and developments. [00:04:00] - Nature and Design "Nature ignores design that ignores nature." - Tom MortensenImportance of taking cues from nature in design to create sustainable solutions. [00:10:00] - Collaboration in Design "So this thing called design, what happens is we all get together to do that design, and then you engineer that design, and then you landscape that design, and then you build that design." - Tom MortensenEmphasis on multidisciplinary approach and early collaboration to save time and create effective designs. [00:14:00] - Grant Funding for Green Infrastructure "There's grant funding available to implement GI, and so if you're going to add 5,000 square feet of impervious on a site, you have to implement some form of GI." - Tom MortensenExample of a successful project on a college campus receiving $1.3 million in funding. [00:20:00] - Project Examples Colectivo Coffee: "On one half of the roof that drains to the east, we took that roof water, that rainwater, and we put it through a series of troughs and created a big water feature." - Tom MortensenChallenges and successes in managing urban sites with creative stormwater solutions. [00:34:00] - Natural Design Principles "If you go back to that picture I just showed you, all the trees are on the side slopes, in the uplands. That's where the trees grow. They don't grow down in a low flow channel." - Tom MortensenImportance of mimicking natural landscapes in stormwater design. [00:39:00] - Relationship to Water and Future Outlook "The earth is not green, it's blue. And I think we need to start thinking differently about our relationship to water." - Tom MortensenDiscussion on the ongoing challenges and progress in water management and sustainability. In this episode of the Stormwater World Podcast, host Ty Garmon and Tom Mortensen, a senior project manager and landscape architect with over 35 years of experience, discuss the integration of nature into design, emphasizing the importance of green infrastructure and sustainable stormwater management. Tom shares insights on how to effectively balance creative and technical aspects in site planning, the benefits of multidisciplinary collaboration, and the necessity of understanding natural systems. He highlights successful projects and the role of grant funding in promoting green infrastructure, concluding with thoughts on the evolving relationship between humans and water management. The views expressed are that of the individual and do not represent the opinions of any companies past, present or future. Connect with Tom Mortensen: Connect with Tom on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommortensen1/ Email: tom.mortensen@rasmith.com Website: https://www.rasmith.com/ Presentation: Connect with Ty Garmon, LEED AP: Connect with Ty on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tygarmon/ Sign up to be a guest: https://forms.gle/whijSz9Tio3iZda57 Check out The Stormwater World Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9hVXVJ5oXplf_V9XOPpR6A Podcast Website: https://stormwaterworld.com Stay Informed! Sign-up for the Stormwater World Newsletter: https://stormwaterworld.com/newsletter-sign-up/ Please don't forget to rate, comment, and subscribe to Stormwater World Podcast on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts!
