No other major manmade recreational activity is as reliant on one major natural resource element vital to the survival and existence of the entire human species as is the game of golf. Water is nearly always a required input for golf courses nowadays. Even the Old Course, St. Andrews’ natural wonder, now has a full irrigation system primed and ready to quench the thirst of its turf in the odd situation that Mother Nature fails to provide.
According to “An Assessment of Water Conservation in Texas,” “Water demand projections utilized in the 2002 State Water Plan indicate that 43 percent of municipal demands in 2050 will not be met in a drought with current supplies.” Unfortunately, this situation is not limited to Texas. An adequate supply of water is fleeting at best. All one has to do is remember the situation in Georgia and Florida recently and the entire state of Arizona over the last decade.
We here in South central Texas have been in the throes of a severe drought now for nearly two full years. Recent rains have helped, but the situation is still dire. Golf course managers have had to deal with empty water hazards, line breaks due to shifting clay-based soils and bare soil areas outside of their sprinklers’ reach. Thankfully, most of the San Antonio region’s golf facilities are using recycled water sources for irrigation. Those that are not are struggling with unique management challenges and changing playing conditions. We can expect that recycled water supplies will be subject to strict conservation someday in the near future.
As the Texas Water Plan states, we should embrace all aspects of “water conservation, sound water management strategies and effective and adequate investment in a range of solutions are essential to meet the water demands.” A few of the major areas for consideration include water supply, irrigation practices and drought management.
Water supply
Courses that have a secure, long-term water supply are sitting pretty. If you are unsure about your situation, check into your water rights documentation, water use permits and your facility’s utilization of water harvesting as a means to supplement supplies.
According to the second installment of the GCSAA’s Golf Course Environmental Profile, only about 12 percent of 18-hole facilities use recycled water for irrigation. Alarmingly low, in my mind. The golf course industry must search out and procure all available nonpotable water supplies to attain anything approaching sustainability.
The Profile also reveals these phenomenal facts: On average, golf courses in the U.S. average over 2 billion (yes, with a “B”) gallons of irrigation water per day. Over a year, that works out to nearly 2 feet of irrigation water applied to an average of nearly 81 acres of golf course. Lifeblood is right! A good-news fact in the report is that “approximately 14 percent of irrigation water is supplied by municipal drinking water sources.” We should reduce that number every year until we do not use drinking-quality water to irrigate golf courses.
Irrigation practices
How is old is your irrigation system? If it regularly requires fixing, including line breaks, slow leaks, broken heads or poor or excessive coverage, it’s time to program funding for improvements. Incorporating two-way communication between the central controller and devices around the course can provide efficiencies. The controller itself can make a huge difference in how much water you end up using. In San Antonio, “conforming” golf course facilities are those using a computer-calculated daily evapotranspiration rate to determine irrigation needs. Some astute golf course managers believe this can lead to over watering at times. Moisture sensors have been around for some time and can prove valuable. Watering only when the turf needs it is the bottom line. Accomplishing this goal in any way will certainly improve your ability to reduce water use to that magic number of “only what we need.”
Drought management
How and when a course receives supplemental irrigation is both an art and a science. Some managers like their courses firm. Some customers like a softer, more receptive playing condition. Either way, knowing exactly the quantity of water needed to maintain desired results appears to be a rare situation. Many golf course managers know how much water they use by using their computer controllers. Every morning the total number of gallons used is available. Actually quantifying irrigation requirements per playing area is not as simple. How much water do you need to maintain your facility? Figure it out. Then determine how to reduce your water use if faced with drought management restrictions. For example, reducing running times overall may be a first step. Eliminating out of play area sprinklers may work. Obviously, the last area where irrigation would be eliminated are the greens and surrounds. By quantifying specific water requirements and creating a plan on how you would reduce the amount needed, based on specific golf course management principles, golf course managers can stay in control of their facility.
Water is not only golf’s lifeblood; it’s the limiting factor to the game’s long-term success and viability. The economy should improve and golfers should return but water supplies are finite. Consequently, golf course industry managers must enlist the latest conservation practices and technologies, careful and proactive management of water supplies, irrigation practices and drought management. The era of using plentiful and inexpensive water, especially potable supplies, has passed us by.
Bushman is the director of Ecodesigns International, a golf course management consulting firm. Contact him at ecodesigns@satx.rr.com.
