The grant program is funded through the Environmental Institute for Golf, the philanthropic arm of GCSAA, through a donation from The PGA Tour. Chapters receiving $10,000 grants include Connecticut GCSA, California GCSA, Carolinas GCSA and Tennessee GCSA, while the Eastern Shore (Md.) Association of GCS and the Mid-Atlantic Association of GCS will receive $7,500 each, and the Georgia GCSA and the Metropolitan (N.Y. and N.J.) GCSA will receive $5,000 each.
Nine affiliated chapters of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) will receive a total of $67,000 toward establishing comprehensive golf course best management practices (BMPs) at the state level. The BMP grant program is funded through the Environmental Institute for Golf, the philanthropic arm of GCSAA, through a donation from The PGA Tour.
One of the four groups receiving a grant amount of $10,000 is the Connecticut GCSA, whose effort is being spearheaded by Pete Gorman, the golf course superintendent at Pine Orchard Yacht and Country Club in Branford, Conn., and the secretary-treasurer of the Connecticut association.
“We want Connecticut to be at the forefront of the BMP project,” said Gorman, whose state includes 179 golf courses. “We want to be a resource for other states and other industries going forward. GCSAA is taking the lead in helping all of us be leaders in best management practices, such as water conservation and all environmental topics. It’s a commitment to our profession.”
Other chapters receiving $10,000 grants for 2017 are the California GCSA, the Carolinas GCSA and the Tennessee GCSA. The Eastern Shore (Md.) Association of GCS and the Mid-Atlantic Association of GCS will receive $7,500 each, while the Georgia GCSA and the Metropolitan (N.Y. and N.J.) GCSA will receive $5,000 each. The Michigan GCSA will receive $2,000. All applications were reviewed by a grant task group composed of GCSAA members.
GCSAA recommends the use of agronomic and environmental BMPs for all golf course operations. BMPs are broad-based and encompass management of turfgrass, landscape, environmental resources, buildings and operations.
“Best management practices are key to successful golf course operations, and they also provide a solid foundation for advocating on behalf of superintendents and the golf industry,” GCSAA CEO Rhett Evans said. “GCSAA has significantly increased funding to this program to help our chapters start or enhance their BMP programs.”
“Best management practices will help us demonstrate that golf courses can deliver benefits to everyone in a community,” said Cal Roth, senior vice president of agronomy at the PGA Tour. “This also represents a longstanding commitment to environmental excellence at our own TPC courses.”
GCSAA launched the grant program in 2014 to assist in developing new BMP guides, updating existing guides or for verification programs. The priority goal of the program is to have all 50 states offer established BMPs by 2020.
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