| FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 23, 2008
Contact: PAUL PERILLIE, MAJORITY CAUCUS AIDE -- #(631) 854-4500
Greener Greens
Legislature Backs Cooper Plan to Make County Golf Courses
More Environmentally Friendly
The Suffolk County Legislature recently approved a resolution sponsored
by Majority Leader Jon Cooper (D-Huntington) to make the County's
four public golf courses more environmentally friendly by participating
in the globally recognized Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program
for Golf Courses (ACSP-not affiliated with the National Audubon
Society).
The ACSP helps golf courses protect our environment and preserve
the natural heritage of the game of golf by helping course managers
enhance the valuable natural habitats that golf courses provide,
improve efficiency, and minimize potentially harmful impacts of
golf operations. To date, more than 2,110 golf courses in 24 countries
(500 in the U.S. alone) participate in the ACSP. All four of the
County's courses, Timber Point in Great River, West Sayville, Indian
Island in Riverhead, and Bergen Point in Babylon will participate
in the eco-retooling.
The United States Golf Association (USGA), which partners with
the ACSP, endorses the program because it places no restrictions
on the property as a condition of participation and because all
decisions concerning the implementation of program suggestions remain
with the golf course superintendent and course officials.
The six-point program helps golf courses achieve their environmental
goals by working with course managers one-on-one to devise an environmental
plan tailored specifically to their needs. Golf courses work with
the ACSP towards certificates of recognition in the areas of:
- Environmental
Planning: Each club generates a written plan outlining
their goals and proposed projects.
- Wildlife
and Habitat Management: Emphasis is given toward maintaining
the best possible habitat for the course considering its location,
size, layout and type of property.
- Outreach
and Education: Gains the support of golfers. Train and
encourage continuing education for maintenance staff.
- Chemical
Use Reduction and Safety: Educating workers and members
about plant management, pesticide application and use of fertilizers.
- Water
Conservation: Attention is directed toward irrigation
systems, recapturing and reuse of water sources, maintenance practices
and turfgrass selection.
- Water
Quality Management: Strategies are devised to monitor
water quality, protect wetlands, reduce erosion, filter runoff,
and if warranted, improve conditions.
The ACSP changes are not always complicated. For example, the program
recommends that simply hand watering dry spots often saves water
by eliminating the need to run the entire irrigation system.
"Traditionally, golf courses have been a mixed bag from an environmental
perspective. While they are beautiful, open spaces, they have often
consumed huge amounts of natural resources and have been places
where pesticides and plows are given preference," says Cooper. "The
great thing about the ACSP is that it helps golf courses be as environmentally
attractive as they are aesthetically attractive."
|
