SeedKit

Northwest Forest
biology
METRICS
· As highlighted at the beginning of this document, in a healthy
Northwest forest, 49.8% of the rainfall infiltrates, 0.2% runs off in
large storm events, and 50% returns to the atmosphere due to
evaporation or plant transpiration (Beyerlein, 1998).
Photograph courtesy of Nickpdx, 2006
Lesson for the Built Environment
How can buildings mimic not just one element of the forest, but the
entire system, to eliminate almost all water run off?
BIOLOGY
A Pacific Northwest forest, and the millions of
plants, fungi, and bacteria which make up its
flora, is a highly successful system for managing
water flows. The natural elements of these
forests presented in this report, plus many,
many more, combine to create an incredibly
complex system that results in almost no runoff.
It is the total function of these elements—the
structure, the types of surfaces, and the
evapotranspiration of the plants—which leads to
a balanced water cycle.
BUILDING AS FOREST: EVAPORATION STRATEGIES
Image by Todd Bronk, 2014
52 seedkit DESIGN CONCEPTS LEARNED FROM PACIFIC NORTHWEST FORESTS