Solutions > Ecological Site Solutions
 

NATURE-BASED SITE DESIGN

 

RES builds ecology into every site

Site-specific ecological planning built into architecture, engineering, and construction from day one. Native landscapes, soils, habitat, and green infrastructure shape how your site functions throughout its lifetime.

LEARN WHAT’S POSSIBLE ON YOUR SITE

 

Design ecology in, not around

Ecological Site Solutions (ESS) are engineered systems of native landscapes, habitat, soil uplift, and nature-based stormwater management, tailored to each property’s soils, climate, hydrology, and ecological potential. They are the on-site pillar of Nature-based Solutions (NbS).

Landscaping usually comes last, planned around a finished building. RES integrates ecological planning alongside architecture, engineering, and construction from the earliest stages, and serves as a single partner for design, permitting, construction, and verification.

Every element performs a function: stormwater management, heat mitigation, biodiversity uplift, or public access. ESS lowers long-term operating costs, supports permitting and community approval, and advances sustainability goals for finance, development, and sustainability teams alike.

Ecology isn’t a separate scope. It’s how the site works.

 

The key is starting early

ESS works best when it’s designed in from the start. Planned early, it costs less to build and performs better. Added late, it becomes an expense instead of an asset.

Already running a native plant program? ESS builds on it.

ESS pairs with water stewardship and early mitigation planning to address operational, regulatory, and stakeholder priorities together.

 
RES ESS process
 

With an early start, ESS is designed to give back

 
Traditional Approach ESS Approach ESS Benefits
Turf grass and ornamental planting Native landscape restoration Lower irrigation, mowing, and pest management costs year after year, with reduced fire and drought risk
Engineered detention basins, piping, and hard channels Nature-based stormwater management Regulatory compliance, often at lower lifecycle cost than gray infrastructure
Off-site mitigation credits On-site stream or wetland restoration A mitigation obligation converted into an on-site asset: two requirements met with one investment
Fragmented remnant vegetation Habitat corridors Measurable biodiversity uplift that supports corporate environmental reporting
Fenced setbacks and buffer land Trails and accessible green space Required buffer acreage put to work as a documented benefit for employees, visitors, and neighbors
Landscaping that does nothing for neighbors Ecological restoration with community co-benefits A visible local contribution that can ease community concerns during approvals
 

What ESS replaces, and what you get back

  • Native landscape restoration (instead of turf grass and ornamental planting) → Lower irrigation, mowing, and pest management costs year after year, with reduced fire and drought risk.
  • Nature-based stormwater management (instead of engineered detention basins, piping, and hard channels) → Regulatory compliance, often at lower lifecycle cost than gray infrastructure.
  • On-site stream or wetland restoration (instead of off-site mitigation credits) → A mitigation obligation converted into an on-site asset: two requirements met with one investment.
  • Habitat corridors (instead of fragmented remnant vegetation) → Measurable biodiversity uplift that supports corporate environmental reporting. Learn more about habitat corridors.
  • Trails and accessible green space (instead of fenced setbacks and buffer land) → Required buffer acreage put to work as a documented benefit for employees, visitors, and neighbors.
  • Ecological restoration with community co-benefits (instead of landscaping that does nothing for neighbors) → A visible local contribution that can ease community concerns during approvals.
 

Start early

ESS delivers the most when it’s integrated at the design phase. Planned from the beginning, ecological systems are cheaper to build and more effective. Added late, they become an expense instead of an asset.

Already running a native plant program? ESS builds on it.

ESS works best alongside water stewardship and early mitigation planning, addressing operational, regulatory, and stakeholder priorities together.

 

RES ESS Projects

 
 

Green infrastructure that manages stormwater at its source

Stormwater is easiest to manage where it falls. Green infrastructure turns runoff into a site feature rather than a problem to be piped away.

RES provides full-service green infrastructure design, permitting, construction, and long-term stewardship across the United States, from rain gardens and bioswales in urban neighborhoods to constructed wetlands and floodplain restoration.

Rain gardens, bioswales, permeable pavements, and constructed wetlands work together to capture, treat, and slow stormwater, reducing overflows while creating cleaner waterways, cooler neighborhoods, and healthier ecosystems.

 

RES Stormwater Management Projects

 
 
Native vegetation growing beneath utility-scale solar arrays

Solar and wind sites that protect soil and habitat

The land beneath an array or turbine can be more than cleared ground. Planted with native species, it holds soil, supports pollinators, and keeps maintenance costs down over the life of the project.

RES brings expertise in renewable energy site assessment, vegetation and soil management planning, landscape screening, and environmental compliance, so your facility delivers clean electricity and measurable ecological benefits.

  • Site selection and assessment: Prioritize degraded lands and avoid high-conservation-value ecosystems. We assess soil conditions, vegetation potential, hydrology, and wildlife habitat to guide project design.
  • Solar development: Native grasslands, pollinator-friendly plantings, or grazing management beneath and around ground-mounted, utility-scale arrays, providing habitat while maintaining energy production efficiency.
  • Wind energy development: Native grassland and shrubland restoration across wind facilities that supports grassland bird habitat, with strategic siting and adaptive management to minimize wildlife impacts.
  • Vegetation and soil management plans: Site-specific plans that turn ecological principles into field actions: establish native plant communities, protect soil function, monitor ecological outcomes, and adapt based on results.
  • Landscape screening assessment: GIS-based viewshed analysis and landscape characterization to identify screening vegetation and facility design modifications that fit projects into the landscape.
 

Solar and wind sites that protect soil and habitat

The land beneath an array or turbine can be more than cleared ground. Planted with native species, it holds soil, supports pollinators, and keeps maintenance costs down over the life of the project.

RES brings expertise in renewable energy site assessment, vegetation and soil management planning, landscape screening, and environmental compliance, so your facility delivers clean electricity and measurable ecological benefits.

  • Site selection and assessment: Prioritize degraded lands and avoid high-conservation-value ecosystems. We assess soil conditions, vegetation potential, hydrology, and wildlife habitat to guide project design.
  • Solar development: Native grasslands, pollinator-friendly plantings, or grazing management beneath and around ground-mounted, utility-scale arrays, providing habitat while maintaining energy production efficiency.
  • Wind energy development: Native grassland and shrubland restoration across wind facilities that supports grassland bird habitat, with strategic siting and adaptive management to minimize wildlife impacts.
  • Vegetation and soil management plans: Site-specific plans that turn ecological principles into field actions: establish native plant communities, protect soil function, monitor ecological outcomes, and adapt based on results.
  • Landscape screening assessment: GIS-based viewshed analysis and landscape characterization to identify screening vegetation and facility design modifications that fit projects into the landscape.
 

RES Solar and Wind Projects

 
 

Ask RES Experts

What are Ecological Site Solutions? Ecological Site Solutions (ESS) are engineered ecological systems tailored to a property’s soils, climate, hydrology, and ecological potential. RES integrates them alongside architecture, engineering, and construction, so native landscapes, habitat, and green infrastructure become part of how a site functions over its lifetime.

How are Ecological Site Solutions different from landscaping? Conventional landscaping is mostly turf and ornamental planting. In ESS, each element serves a function, such as stormwater management, heat mitigation, biodiversity enhancement, or public access. It’s habitat that benefits the community, employees, and the environment, not a compliance checkbox.

What industries use Ecological Site Solutions? ESS applies to any development where the landscape can do work, including large-scale commercial, industrial, institutional, and infrastructure development projects.

When should ESS be integrated into a project? As early as possible in the design phase. When ecological systems are planned from the beginning, they cost less to build and perform better. When they’re added late, they become an expense instead of an asset.

Can on-site restoration meet mitigation requirements? Yes, in some cases. On-site stream or wetland restoration can turn a mitigation obligation into an asset, so a single investment satisfies two requirements.

How does green infrastructure manage stormwater? Rain gardens, bioswales, permeable pavements, and constructed wetlands capture, treat, and slow stormwater where it falls. That reduces overflows and flooding and improves water quality. RES provides design, permitting, construction, and long-term stewardship.