Tahoe Donner Golf Course is thinking green, but not in the way you might think.
The course is one of only 29 golf courses in California to achieve certification in the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program, a conservation assistance initiative that encourages and assists golf courses to enhance wildlife habitats and protect natural resources for the benefit of animals and golfers.
It is not the only Tahoe area course to gain certification; Coyote Moon, Lake Tahoe, Northstar-at-Tahoe, Old Brockway and the Resort at Squaw Creek golf courses are all program-certified and taking steps to balance the demands of golfers with the needs of the natural environment.
Tahoe Donner course superintendent Greg Bliek and maintenance employees worked for more than a year to document the environmental efforts that were already in place while developing a required environmental plan. It was their goal to use low-impact and organic pest management, monitor water quality and consumption, and to set aside areas on the course where wildlife and essential habitat would not be disturbed by golfers or maintenance crews.
All this had to be accomplished while ensuring that fairways and greens were acceptable to golfers.
"We are trying to stay away from using synthetic fertilizers and use organic, and mow areas less, while still providing the golfers the ultra-manicured course they are looking for," Bliek said. "It is kind of a struggle to provide both, but we make it work."
Tahoe Donner Golf Course stays busy during its five-month season. Last year over 30,000 rounds were played, with an average of 240 players a day in July and August.
Golfers will notice more wildlife around the course than ever before, creating a more interesting setting. Bird boxes have been provided for nesting with 10 more planned to go in this summer. In an effort to control insects, bat houses will be put around the course. A screech owl box and nuthatch box have been donated by an association member.
Bliek has designated areas that are no longer maintained, where grasses are allowed to grow taller to provide rodents and other animals cover and a corridor for them to cross in otherwise open areas. Color-coded stakes have been placed on the course to alert golfers to hazardous or no-entry areas.
Fifteen acres of the 95-acre course are now protected for wildlife. These areas are mostly between holes where it doesn't directly affect course play.
There have been some frustrated golfers who have lost a few balls to staked-off areas, but for the most part Bliek feels that the program and the environmental improvements have been well received by golfers and the public.
Bliek believes that by providing signs on the course with a description of area plants and animals, golfers' time on the course will be more interesting and educational.
"What it does is take their eye away from the golf ball for a moment, so they can see what a beautiful piece of property they are on."
Source: Reno Gazette-Journal
