The Rob Report

Water Wars

GROWING UP, I LEARNED about all sorts of acti vism that shaped our world. From Gandhi’s hunger strike in India, to Rosa Parks’ bus boycott in Montgomery, Ala., to Tommie Smith’s and John Carlos’ Olympic protest in Mexico, people were creati ng positi ve change across the world. Like Dr. Marti n Luther King, many paid the ulti mate sacrifi ce for what they believed in.

Not all civil disobedience works for the bett er, however. “Harmless” acts like animal rights acti vists throwing paint on people who wear fur are destructi ve and rarely eff ecti ve, while a peaceful protest in 1989 resulted in many deaths at Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China. America’s history with disobedience goes much deeper and gets a heck of a lot more horrifi c, of course, but I’ll leave that discussion for another day.

In August, we posted an arti cle online—and in the daily newslett er—about climate acti vists vandalizing a French golf course aft er clubs received a water ban exempti on. A local branch of the Exti ncti on Rebellion movement fi lled golf course holes with cement to protest against the exempti on of golf greens from water bans amid the country’s severe drought.

The exempti on of golf greens in France has sparked controversy as 100 French villages are short of drinking water, BBC News reported. Golf offi cials say greens would die in three days without water.

“A golf course without a green is like an ice-rink without ice,” Gérard Rougier of the French Golf Federati on told the France Info news website. He added that 15,000 people work at golf courses across the country.

Some constraints on the golf course remain, BBC News reported. Watering must be carried out at night with no more than 30% of the usual volume of water.

Conversely, we’ve also recently covered news from a survey conducted in 2021 by the Golf Course Superintendents Associati on of America (GCSAA) and funded by the GCSAA Foundati on as part of its Golf Course Environmental Profi le. The program found that U.S. golf faciliti es applied approximately 1.68 million acrefeet of water in 2020, a 29% reducti on since 2005.

“Golf course superintendents are responsible stewards of water resources, and the latest nati onal survey results demonstrate that,” said Rhett Evans, CEO of GCSAA. “Superintendents are committ ed to effi cient water management and have implemented evidence-based best management practi ces that result in reduced water use.

And it’s not just that superintendents are using less water, in some cases they’ve completely switched to reclaimed water. The Lakes at Hemet West’s ninehole golf course in Hemet, Calif. recently made the change to using recycled water to irrigate the course and drought-tolerant landscaping in some areas, reports The Press-Enterprise of Riverside, Calif.

Glenn Miller, Golf Course Consultant for The Lakes, told The Press-Enterprise the sustainable change will preserve the 50-year-old lakes and “allow us to conti nue to live in a comfortable environment.”

Part of that change was partnering with the Eastern Municipal Water District, which has converted about 10 other courses in the area, including Golf Club at Rancho California in Murrieta, Cherry Hills Golf Course in the Sun City area of Menifee, and Canyon Lake Golf and Country Club, to recycled water for irrigati on over the last few years, The Press-Enterprise reported.

Before, The Lakes used 250 acre-feet of drinkable water every year and aft er the water-conserving changes they’ll use approximately 70 acre-feet of drinkable water and 110 acre-feet of recycled water each year, says Joe Mouawad, Eastern’s General Manager.

Water is clearly a precious commodity. While some superintendents are blessed with an abundance of precipitati on, many are forced to draw from a dwindling resource.

Superintendents are the best of the best when it comes to responsible irrigati on. I can’t say that for the rest of us. I was driving home in the rain from an event recently and saw sprinklers at two homes and a public library watering their lawns. Blame a set-it-and-forget-it atti tude, but you won’t see that type of waste on a golf course.

Water is clearly a precious commodity. While some superintendents are blessed with an abundance of precipitation, many are forced to draw from a dwindling resource.

Rob Thomas • Editor

rthomas@wtwhmedia.com