A
round the world, this winter
has been one of extremes.
Severe drought in California
and other parts of the western US;
record low temperatures across much
of the rest of the country; and near
Biblical levels of rainfall in Britain and
parts of Europe.
There is no need for those in the
golf business to debate the causes
of these extreme weather events.
Really, all that matters to golf clubs,
course owners and managers is their
consequences. The key consequence,
without a doubt, is a business
outlook in which the golf sector
needs, once again, to look closely at
its relationship with the surrounding
environment, and its use of resources,
most importantly water.
We have, of course, been here
before. The golf business has come a
long way in terms of environmental
stewardship, and, though not everyone
in the ‘green’ movement has noticed,
that fact has started to get through
to authority. Nevertheless, this isn’t a
time to pat ourselves on the backs and
lose focus. Restrictions on chemicals
and water use are only going to get
tighter—look, for example, at the golf
business in the Netherlands, which is
facing a total ban on all pesticides and
fungicides within the next five years.
More to the point, it is massively in
golf’s interest to be seen as a pioneer,
rather than a laggard, in this respect.
It may be true that other sectors could
learn lessons from golf’s record, but
that isn’t the point.
Fortunately, golf course designers
and managers across the US and
elsewhere are showing no signs of
letting up. Wherever you go in the
golf world, look closely and you
will see inspiring stories of courses
taking radical steps to reduce water
use, to cut reliance on chemicals, and
to be better stewards of the natural
landscape. And a number of ASGCA
members are leading the way.
In the small town of Hobbs, N.M.,
close to the border with Texas,
Andy Staples, ASGCA Associate,
is getting started on a project that
amply demonstrates how golf’s
sustainability has developed. The city,
which is experiencing an economic
boom as a result of the oil industry’s
growth in the area, has hired Staples
to rebuild its municipal golf course,
and the project will transform the
course’s sustainability record, in both
environmental and social terms.
The golf course, renamed the
Rock Wind Community Links
, will
play a key role in changing how the city
views itself. “Because of its dependence
on the oil business, Hobbs has a pretty
transient population,” Staples explains.
“So it is investing in facilities—trying to
increase liveability for new and existing
residents. The area has been known in
the past for having significant youth
drug and alcohol problems.”
Naturally, in a dry area like New
Mexico, the city also has to manage
its water resources carefully. “The
golf course has three of the highest
quality groundwater wells in the area
on its property,” says Staples. “In the
past, those wells have been the key
source of irrigation for the course. But
now, Hobbs is expanding its effluent
water program, and so we are going
to transition the golf course away
from those wells and onto effluent—
and store effluent on site.”
The course will retain access to
the groundwater for occasional use,
when soils require flushing with
fresh water. But the centerpiece of
the changes is the construction of
a 5.3 acre lake, storing 13.5 million
gallons of effluent water, at the heart
of the property. And it’s this lake that
is going to give Staples’ ‘Community
Links’ idea real meat.
“The key is to make the facility
suitable for other activities beyond
golf,” he says. “So, the area next to the
lake will become a focal point for the
whole local community. Trail users
will be able to come there to walk, to
use the clubhouse and just hang out
by the water, and we’re talking about
having small sailboats, maybe paddle
boats and even remote control boats
for people to use.”
“When we heard the vision that Andy
had for how our golf course could be
transformed into something other
09
Hoover Country Club has five million gallons of water storage following
a water management project overseen by Bill Bergin, ASGCA Associate
