Blog Posts

January 29, 2018 by NYS BMP ·

Winter in New York affords time for reflection on the growing season and planning for the new one. However, after a month of that exercise, you are still “stuck in the shop”! So while you are stuck inside why not conduct a review of the potential environmental risk? Did you know your maintenance shop is often the location on the course that poses the GREATEST risk to water quality – POINT source pollution.

A critical first step in aligning your facility with Best Management Practices is to assess potential point source pollution risk. Point source pollution is any single identifiable source of pollution from which pollutants are discharged, such as a pipe. Examples of point sources include:

• discharges from equipment washing area
• waste from pesticide
• fertilizer and equipment maintenance wastes
• unintended releases fertilizer and pesticides storage areas

It is clear much of this risk emanates from the maintenance shop area where equipment and chemicals are stored and transferred to and from equipment. Minimizing the risk from these areas begins with recognizing the potential for off-site movement, understanding any regulatory requirements associated with the volume of chemical storage or rinsate, and mitigating the risk through proper containment.

If you are considering a new facility, local building inspectors should be consulted during planning to outline the permitting process and local requirements. Also, consider meeting with a representative from a NYSDEC regional office and the local fire marshal. The NYSDEC requests a State Environmental Quality Review (SEQR) for new construction, which is administered by local governments. NYSDEC, and other interested and involved agencies, comments on SEQRs.

An excellent place to begin any assessment of your existing facility begins with understanding the regulatory guidelines that are provided by the NYSDEC. These have been summarized on the NYS BMP website.

A very practical article to consider the condition of your existing facility was penned in 2014 by USGA Senior Agronomist Dave Oatis, titled, I Know We Don’t Have the Money, but Can We Afford NOT to Invest in a New Maintenance Facility?

Since you are stuck inside, you might as well consider looking around at the building you might be stuck in and see if it measures up!

January 25, 2018 by NYS BMP ·

Stewardship of the natural resources on New York State Golf Courses is the guiding principle behind the establishment and implementation of our Best Management Practices. The media, activists and a muted industry shape public perception, which in turn influences public policy. Try as we may, the golf industry is facing an uphill battle with the majority of the public regarding perception of our stewardship of the New York State’s natural resources. Further, an activist element exists in NY focused on health effects of pesticides and nutrients applied to the land, from farms and orchards to sports fields, lawns, and golf courses. Short term, developing relationships with members of our community off the golf course, educating members on the golf course, and communicating the “natural capital” of the course to policy and the regulatory community is critical.

The “long play” is to have data that tells the story. In an age when reputable sources of information are under siege by the “snap-face-chat-tweet” industry, collecting data that demonstrates action seems to be the best form of a quiet revolution. You can hide from contributing the data we need for BMPs to be tailored to our needs, you can avoid learning about aspects of your course may not entirely understand, but in the end, we each will be held accountable for how we steward the land under our care.

Not all of us can be a Ted Horton, Dan Dinelli, Anthony William or Matt Ceplo. But we can all be recognized for doing our part in shaping the future of environmental stewardship on golf courses in the 21st century. It takes very little time to answer the questions on the assessment of your knowledge, maybe a few more minutes to reflect on the survey of your current practices and their alignment with what science says right now is BEST-not good, not very good-but BEST.

Take 20-30 minutes and take the quiz and survey. It works on your phone, your desktop, laptop and tablet, it’s not sexy but it works. I doubt you will feel any excitement when you are done with the process, but knowing that you are making the long play for the high ground of environmental stewardship might provide a sense of greater accomplishment. It’s what’s BEST!

December 18, 2017 by NYS BMP ·

Pollution Prevention Institute at RIT that partnered with Locust Hill CC on the low cost wash pad demonstration project has just published their case study on the project. Through a Turf Environmental Stewardship Fund grant, the BMP project was able to assist in the demonstration through sponsoring the cost of the equipment purchases (~$6,000) and the participation of Cornell University.

From RIT’s report on the case study, the results were as follows:

• After reductions of up to 50% using air blowing and different nozzles, approximately 700 gal/day of wastewater would need to be managed. Then if, this wastewater can be filtered and reused, overall reductions in wastewater would exceed 90%. A screen and sand filter was tested and installed, and a UV lamp was added to help control bacterial growth
• Equipment costs were approximately $6,000 and engineering support provided by NYSP2I
• As of Fall 2017, system working satisfactory and water recycled
• System will be monitored periodically for performance and quantification of water/wastewater reduction

Read the full project summary on the RIT website: https://tinyurl.com/y8oyb4bc