sustainability

Beneath the concrete planks and beautiful plantings is an advanced system for water drainage and retention. Photo by Iwan Baan.

While you’re walking along the High Line, you may not realize it, but below your feet is an intricate drainage system that helps to reduce storm water runoff and helps to keep our planting beds healthy.

Here’s an inside peek at what’s happening under the surface of the world’s longest green roof.

On the Falcone Flyover, visitors can walk through lush foliage at canopy-level during the warmer months of the year. Current mulching efforts will mean healthier and more robust plants this upcoming summer. Photo by Iwan Baan

We are always looking for unique ways to minimize waste, cultivate sustainable operations, and keep our discarded plant material closer to home. That is why we are excited about a new opportunity for closed-loop recycling with the introduction of our own organic mulch below the Falcone Flyover, on the High Line between West 25th and 26th Streets.

The Falcone Flyover contains an elevated walkway that carries visitors through a canopy of sumac and magnolia trees. Below the pathway, a gently rolling topography creates soil depth to accommodate shrubs and trees, but it is also prone to erosion.

A new experiment is underway to prevent the erosion and increase the soil’s fertility. Using a test area, the High Line Gardeners recently introduced an application of organic mulch created from discarded plant material from the High Line, with the goal of increasing use of compostable material on-site and reducing the frequency of visits to off-site composting locations in the future.

• The Real Deal weighs different developers' treatment of the grid, the High Line and the challenges of the site.