Rainwater Harvesting & Plants-As-Infrastructure with Brad Lancaster

Brad Lancaster is a guerilla tree-planter and rainwater harvester in Tucson who has been instrumental in changing the way that the city he lives in treats rainwater and street trees. He has helped covince the city of Tucson to update its own infrastructure so as to absorb - rather than waste - rainwater by using things like curb-cuts, street-side infiltration basins and native plants. In this conversation, we learn how cities in hot, arid climates can update infrastructure and use native plants to reduce flooding, keep the landscape cooler and provide a better overall quality of life for the people that live in them. This conversation is full of hope. check out the abundance of resources and diagrams on Brad's website : www.harvestingrainwater.com and neighborhoodforesters.org

Ad-free episodes of the crime pays podcast are available on the patreon at : www.patreon.com/crimepaysbutbotanydoesnt

BRAD'S WEBSITES:
HarvestingRainwater.com

CosechaDeAguaDeLluvia.com

NeighborhoodForesters.org




BRAD LANCASTER'S YouTube CHANNEL:
https://www.youtube.com/c/HarvestingRainwater


BRAD'S BOOKS (available at deep discount direct from him):
https://www.harvestingrainwater.com/shop/




RAIN GARDEN PLANTING ZONES - and how to figure out what to plant where
https://www.harvestingrainwater.com/resources/rain-garden-planting-zones/

Urban Drool Harvesting in Los Angeles
https://www.harvestingrainwater.com/2009/03/harvesting-urban-drool/


Self-guided water tours in Tucson (in-person or virtual)
https://www.harvestingrainwater.com/tour/

Hydrologic redistribution of soil moisture by mesquites (there are better studies, but this is a start)
https://eos.org/research-spotlights/how-mesquite-trees-gain-a-competitive-edge-in-arid-arizona

Guerilla planting
https://www.harvestingrainwater.com/2022/09/guerrilla-planting-of-rain-and-native-food-forests-vibrant-acts-of-hope-collaboration-and-letting-go/

Before and after images of water-harvesting in our neighborhood streets:
https://dunbarspringneighborhoodforesters.org/2022/09/before-and-after-photos-of-green-infrastructure-in-dunbar-spring-neighborhood/

Eddy basins:
https://www.harvestingrainwater.com/resource/backwater-or-eddy-basins/

DIY curb cuts:
https://www.harvestingrainwater.com/resource/do-it-yourself-curb-cut-guide/