Are our golf courses as �green� as they look?

By Dan Rolfe

  (based on information obtained from �Greening Your BC Golf Course� Guide by the Fraser River Action Plan, Environment Canada and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans).

Golf is rapidly emerging as one of British Columbia's most popular sport and leisure activities. British Columbia's 230 golf courses draw an estimated 450,000 golfers each year from across Canada and around the world, and the number of courses increases by two or three each year. 

 Golf courses are often constructed near streams or rivers for aesthetic reasons and to meet irrigation requirements. Their proximity to environmentally sensitive areas means that golf course development and maintenance can have a negative impact on aquatic and wildlife habitat. Construction activities, herbicide and pesticide use, irrigation withdrawals and other routine golf course procedures can seriously harm fish and wildlife habitat if performed without consideration for these values.

Responsible environmental management offers numerous advantages not only to the environment and the public, but also to golfers, golf course superintendents and owners. Specifically, it:

• may reduce the potential for opposition to a new or expanding course;
• facilitates course management by defining objectives and responsibilities;
• provides a progress record for future planning;
• creates healthier turf;
• reduces chemical use, thereby reducing the chances of chemical dependence, kill-off of non-target species, turf stress due to chemical misapplication, and exposure of staff and players to toxic substances;
• lowers operating costs through reduced chemical use;
• averts costs associated with developing environmentally sensitive areas (e.g., approval and habitat reconstruction costs);
• avoids repair and maintenance costs in areas prone to seasonal flooding (e.g., side channels, floodplains and wetlands) and costs associated with the loss of agrochemicals;
• protects water quality for downstream users;
• reduces erosion problems;
• increase course aesthetics by maintaining natural vegetation, which     also provides natural boundaries for recreation, and sustains fish and   wildlife populations.  

In contrast, poor environmental practices can lead to:

•  higher long-term management costs;
•  habitat fragmentation and loss;
•  contaminated soil and sediment;
•  poor water quality;
•  excessive erosion;
•  reduced water levels;
•  fish kills.

Many superintendents already incorporate good stewardship practices into golf course management through Integrated Pest Management (IPM). IPM forms an essential component of good management, but environmental management must also consider other practices that can impact the environment, such as stormwater management, pesticide and fertilizer storage, equipment washing and composting.

A local example of a golf course working towards becoming actually �green� can be found in the floodplain of the Salmon River Watershed. In this environmentally sensitive area, Belmont Golf Course (a member of the Salmon River Watershed Management Partnership) has developed a �naturalization plan� for its 120 acre property as part of a series of environmental management initiatives. This plan aims at enhancing and increasing the availability of habitat for the wildlife that naturally occurs in and around the golf course. Some of the objectives of the plan are to: develop natural grassland areas by decreasing the total area being mowed; designate areas to establish wildflower gardens; conserve water and reduce the use of chemicals on the course; provide nesting sites for birds and bats; enhance aquatic and riparian habitat in the course�s ponds; enhance habitat and food sources for wildlife through natural landscaping and the planting of native trees and shrubs. The plan will also have an information component which will be designed to educate employees, board members, patrons, guests and the general public about the values associated with �naturalizing� golf courses.

The Salmon River Watershed Management Partnership wishes that Belmont Golf Course successfully carries out this initiative of ensuring the course is as �green� as it looks. Naturalizing the managed landscape and reducing the impacts associated with traditional turf maintenance will increase the environmental benefits 120 �green� acres can have in the local fauna (including migratory birds) and flora while providing players an unforgettable golf experience.