Virginia Golfer Sep / Oct 2019 | Page 28

“We can’t operate our business if we’re polluting, not taking care of our lands or not looking out for wildlife. Our job is about being good stewards of our natural resources.” —David Norman, executive director of the Virginia Golf Course Superintendents Association None of these things occur by coin- cidence. Rather, they are the result of careful planning and maintenance by golf course superintendents focused on sound stewardship practices on the properties they shepherd. “Environmental stewardship is where we start,” said David Norman, executive director of the Virginia Golf Course Super- intendents Association. “We can’t operate our business if we’re polluting, not taking care of our lands or not looking out for wildlife. Our job is about being good stew- ards of our natural resources.” While golf courses throughout the state range from the mountains to the Tidewa- ter region to metro Washington, D.C., one thing they all have in common is a new focus that courses can better coexist with their surrounding environments. To encourage that effort, the VGCSA, working alongside other state and national agencies, has attempted to get all course superintendents on the same page with best management practices. One such ini- tiative came when a nutrient management 26 Getting Audubon International certification is the “best thing I’ve done since I’ve been in this business,” said Springfield Golf and Country Club superintendent Lentz Wheeler, shown at left with Jack Gill and the course’s two dogs. plan was established in July 2017 to help golf course superin- tendents prudently minimize chemical usage—cutting back on the use of herbi- cides, pesticides and fertilizers. What was the result of that effort? Nor- man said 99 percent of all Virginia golf courses are currently using the plan. Most superintendents at those same courses are also using a comprehensive “Environmental Best Management Prac- V I R G I N I A G O L F E R | S E P T E M B E R / O C T O B E R 2 0 19 tices for Virginia’s Golf Courses” manual that outlines everything from irrigation, surface water management, water quality monitoring and nutrient management to reducing environmental impacts, improv- ing turf quality and understanding native wildlife habitat. vsga.org