Source: The Arizona Republic
The sprays of treated water that bring the lush fairways to life could be the next flash point for those who draw their livelihood from golf in Arizona.
Many of the challenges facing the industry are similar to those facing the golf industry throughout the nation. But one of the biggest is unique to the rain-starved, fast-growing Southwest.
"Drought is the No. 1 concern right now," said Shawn Connors, president of the state's Golf Industry Association.
The industry says it uses about 5 percent of the state's water but generates at least $1 billion annually in economic impact.
If the drought continues, course operators will have to reduce water use, and they know they're perceived as a low priority behind allocations for homes, health and safety. They also know that state growth and more demand for water threaten their water share and costs, and they fear that even the wastewater they use for much of their irrigation could become harder to get as other industries compete for it.
"It's simply a matter of when, not if, that (water) becomes a crisis mode," Connors told GIA members at their annual meeting.
Course operators have drawn high marks for innovative water use, and draw praise from the governor's office for their practices while mostly avoiding the ire of environmental groups. They say they continue to research ways to improve.
But as water policies tighten, changes - including less overseeding by some courses in the winter - appear inevitable, even if the public apparently does not perceive the industry as a water hog.
"It's not the call we get; it's not the letter we get," Stephanie Sklar, executive director of the 4,000-member Arizona League of Conservation Voters, said of golf-course complaints. "I think that maybe that is a testament to the industry, and they probably have been fairly careful stewards. They're probably far from the worst culprits when it comes to squandering Arizona's water."
Alan Stephens, co-chief of staff for Gov. Janet Napolitano, said, "The perception that golf courses waste water as an industry is incorrect."
That doesn't mean they shouldn't examine ways to use water more efficiently, including not overseeding, Stephens said.
But he also acknowledged that golf is critical to the state's economy, creating an "intricate interplay of issues" between water conservation and business.
"What we are saying is the golf course industry obviously needs to be involved, they need to assist in developing responses to drought, and they need to share in the responsibility (of cutting use) when we have these situations," Stephens said.
Winter grass debate
Tom Patrick, vice president of SunCor Golf, which manages seven Arizona courses, thinks it is unnecessary to reduce overseeding to preserve the Valley's water supply.
Patrick, a GIA co-founder, believes water is "a political issue" being used to keep surrounding states from taking a larger share of the supply.
"There is not a water problem in the Phoenix metropolitan area," Patrick said. "We have enough water in storage facilities for 14.5 million people. There are some rural areas with problems because of a lack of snowpack, but we have an abundance of water in the Valley."
Phoenix municipal courses did not overseed fairways this winter for the third straight year because of water concerns, and course superintendents say they expect to see more Valley courses follow suit. Patrick thinks that would be a big mistake.
"As important as golf is here, it would be devastating from a revenue standpoint," he said. "With the amount of water we have, overseeding should not even be an issue, now or anytime soon."
Grady Gammage, a Valley lawyer active in state water issues, admits to being "conflicted" on golf course water use. He says water allocations for public courses are easier to defend because they impact more people, but they're harder to justify for private golf communities.
If courses were to cut water use further, it likely could show up in summer, rather than winter when courses charge their highest rates and make the most money, Connors said.
"Of all the industries, they probably do the most to be efficient ... but they are very visible," said Mark Frank, director of Arizona Department of Water Resources' Phoenix Active Management Area, which includes most of the state's courses.
Frank expects they'll become more efficient in the future, "if for no other reason than to have a good public image and to save water and to save money."
Managing a resource
Industry representatives say they're responsible with water and use comparatively little for the return they generate in tourism, jobs and taxes.
They're using more wastewater, using and supporting development of more drought- and salt-tolerant grasses, moving to more efficient and sophisticated irrigation equipment, and participating in the governor's drought task force.
With the help of science and technology, they say they want to become better water stewards. In turn, they seek to save money, have a voice in state water decisions and defend against unwarranted supply cuts.
"I'm just as concerned as anybody" about water supplies, said Don Rea, director of golf for Platinum Golf Properties, which manages the Golf Club at Eagle Mountain in Fountain Hills and Augusta Ranch Golf Club in Mesa.
Eagle Mountain superintendent Joe Miller sees a future where heartier grasses will be more tolerant to salt-laden effluent and require less water.
"I think you'll see improved irrigation efficiencies; you're going to be able to micromanage a lot more (sprinkler heads), and they're going to be more efficient," he said.
The industry says its $1 billion economic impact is significant against its 5 percent water use -- which state water officials say might be 1 or 2 percentage points higher. Agriculture uses about 70 percent for a $6 to $7 billion return.
"We need to communicate our business to the public," the GIA's Connors told members at their annual meeting. "This is critical to our success as an industry."
Jeff Bollig, spokesman for the Lawrence, Kan.-based Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, said the No. 1 reason avid golfers choose a course is for its playing conditions, followed by its service and amenities.
In other words, good, green turf brings golfers. And in an economy so dependent on tourism, turf quality isn't something courses want to compromise.
Don Steuter, conservation chairman for the Grand Canyon Chapter of the Sierra Club, said courses had nowhere to go but up in water conservation.
"They use a lot of land, and they do use a lot of water," he said. "(But) you're certainly not going to stop the golf industry. There's too much money in it, and people have too much fun playing it."
The chapter wants to ensure that when courses are built, they incorporate wildlife habitat wherever possible.
A 1995 chapter policy on golf courses also says that the trend toward effluent use for irrigation is a drawback because many desert streams rely on it.
"Given the high growth rate in our state and the potential for so many effluent systems, the permanent diversion of so much water dead-ending on golf courses could de-water some of our streams," the policy reads.
Cut use, cut costs
Jay Pennypacker, president of Platinum Golf Properties, said courses have ample financial incentive to be prudent. Water costs at Eagle Mountain, which tries to use about half effluent and half water fit to drink, are about $275,000 annually, excluding pumping costs, he said. While effluent costs slightly less than potable water, it's a Catch-22, he said.
"It's actually more difficult to maintain quality turf," he said, noting that effluent is high in damaging salts which have to be neutralized with calcium and flushed largely with potable water.
For course superintendents like Eagle Mountain's Miller, a course is a balancing act of testing and managing soil and water.
"The soil is a living organism" he said, and needs to be fed a healthy, balanced diet.
Courses also are using more organic materials to fertilize their grass, which helps buffer the salt content from effluent and build up the soil with nutrients, Miller said.
WATER COST
$275,000 -- Water cost for The Golf Club at Eagle Mountain in Fountain Hills in 2004
$50,000 -- Eagle Mountain's costs to replace all the nozzles on sprinkler systems to ensure maximum efficiency
"Most people spray their house more frequently than we spray for bugs."
-- Joe Miller, superintendent, Golf Club at Eagle Mountain in Fountain Hills
USAGE
499 acre feet * -- Water usage by Eagle Mountain in 2004 (out of 503-acre-foot allotment)
* -- One acre foot equals 325,851 gallons.