Every project is unique, requiring a design approach that is tailored to local ecological, hydrologic, geomorphic, soils, and land use conditions.
AloTerra approaches every design with the objective of obtaining the most synergistic outcomes possible while accomplishing multiple goals. We do not simply aspire to get something to grow on a given site, but rather AloTerra staff work to restore an area to a highly functioning ecological state, with long-term success as a principal outcome. This strategy requires an intimate understanding of the hydrologic, geologic, geomorphic, ecologic, and social contexts of every site for which we take responsibility.
Together with our trusted engineering partners, we form and manage project teams that work effectively to develop a wide variety of design solutions. These solutions balance multiple objectives such as wildlife habitat requirements, varied hydrologic and soils conditions across a site,a wide range of environmental and ecological site constraints & opportunities, regulatory requirement, and – of course – client goals. Because natural systems in the arid west respond to subtle moisture gradients, AloTerra follows a similarly nuanced design approach that respects subtle changes in the landscape, tailoring plant palettes and seed mixes to moisture gradients and other gradients that occur naturally across a restoration site. Following this nuanced design through to construction requires more than sound designs, but also use of diverse locally adapted native vegetation, minimal soil amendments, and carefully sourced material that reduces accidental weed introductions to a restoration site.