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The Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program
for Golf Courses was established to address
pertinent environmental issues in golf
course management. Administered by Audubon
International, the ACSP encourages golf
course superintendents to register their
course as a cooperative sanctuary. Through
this registration, Audubon International
staff helps develop conservation management
plans for the property and offers assistance
to the superintendent and his/her staff for
implementing those plans. To recognize and
support these efforts, Audubon International
grants certificates of achievement for
conservation projects that golf courses
undertake. Courses can apply for
certification in the following six
categories:
1.
Environmental Planning
2.
Outreach and Education
3.
Water Conservation
4.
Water Quality Management
5.
Integrated Pest Management
6.
Wildlife and Habitat Management
As of December 2003, there were 2,455
properties registered in the Audubon
Cooperative Sanctuary Programs. Of those,
only 472 golf courses, 30 businesses, 4
cemeteries, and 9 schools had earned
designated as Certified Audubon Cooperative
Sanctuaries. For more information about the
program please visit
Audubon International's Golf Course
Program Site.
"It is undeniable that nature and the game
of golf are intertwined, and many play
simply for the opportunity to experience
nature firsthand. The early morning walk
through the dew, the sight of a beautiful
landscape, the smell of wildflowers in bloom
and the flash of a bluebird as it flies by
are all experiences that make this game
great. Our efforts in the Audubon
Cooperative Sanctuary Program are designed
to give members and guests of Short Hills
Country Club an intimate feeling of the
natural environment around them as they
play." – Jason P. Snyder, CGCS
In conjunction with the program, we are
undertaking these projects and procedures:
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Installing and monitoring nest boxes for
bluebirds, purple martins, bats,
butterflies, nesting bees and structures
for fish, turtles, and salamanders.
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Planting wildflowers as buffers around
lakes to prevent nutrient loading and
provide animals cover near these water
sources.
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Employing a comprehensive Integrated
Pest Management program IPM is the
reduction (not elimination) of chemical
usage on the golf course. Our program
includes: Employee education, scouting
for disease and insect pressure, and
spraying only if that pressure reaches
set threshold levels. The opportunity
for disease development is also reduced
through cultural practices such as
aerification and topdressing, which
helps promote healthy, more disease
resistant turf.
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Designing and planting flowerbeds around
the golf course using native plants that
provide food and shelter for native
birds.
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Monitoring our ponds during the season
for nutrient loading, ph, micro
invertebrates and algae problems.
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Conserving water by hand treating dry
areas as needed. Proper water management
greatly reduces the opportunity for
disease.
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Informing our membership of our efforts
in regular newsletter articles, on this
website, and through our
Audubon
brochure (PDF).
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