How much water do golf courses use?
Approximately 14 percent of golf facilities use water from a public municipal source and approximately 12 percent use recycled water as a source for irrigation. Specific water sources for 18-hole courses as indicated by participants are noted below: 52 percent use water from ponds or lakes.
How much do golf courses contribute to Arizona's water crisis?
Golf courses, which bring in $3.4 billion annually in Arizona, first came up with conservation strategies under the 1980 Groundwater Management Act. Within the Phoenix area, which consists of Maricopa and two other counties, golf courses are limited in how much water they get for turf, water features and low-water use plantings.
Why recycled water for golf courses?
This recycled water provides moisture and nutrients to the golf course while helping the municipality avoid discharging the effluent water into nearby rivers. The turf does an excellent job of filtering the water of nutrients and breaking down various chemicals and biological contaminants in the water.
How much does the Water Authority pay golf courses to remove turf?
They pay golf courses to do the same thing, with no cap on recovered acreage (though payments don’t exceed $300,000 per fiscal year). The Water Authority has paid out more than $25 million to area golf courses to remove upwards of 1,000 acres of turfgrass, nearly 20% of all golf-course property in the area.
How much water do all the golf courses use?
In California, an average 18-hole golf course sprawls over 110 to 115 acres and conservatively uses almost 90 million gallons of water per year, enough to fill 136 Olympic-size swimming pools, said Mike Huck, a water management consultant who works with golf courses statewide.
Do golf courses waste a lot of water?
Courses around the U.S. suck up around approximately 2.08 billion gallons of water per day for irrigation. That's about 130,000 gallons per day per course, according to the golf industry.
How much water does it take to irrigate a golf course?
Using water use data nationally, an 18-hole golf course uses an average of 152.5 acre-feet of water per year to irrigate 80.7 acres of turfgrass.
How do golf courses affect water?
The average golf course uses 312 gallons of water per day for maintenance of the grounds. As this water flows through the property, it can pick up contaminants such as petroleum, pesticides, and fertilizers.
Are golf courses bad for the environment?
Environmentalists argue that golf course land is not only a waste of space, but also harbors harmful impacts to the earth and environment, such as pesticide use. This negative impact occurs by using large quantities of water and destroying habitats for wildlife species.
How much water does golf use and where does it come from?
Golf, he said, consumes less than 1% of all water used in California, but nearly 25% of Coachella Valley water.
How much water does a golf course use per acre?
Water use varies significantly by agronomic region. An average 18-hole golf facility in the Southwest region uses an average of 4 acre-feet of water per irrigated acre per year. An average 18-hole golf facility in the Northeast region uses an average of 0.8 acre-feet of water per irrigated acre per year.
Do golf courses use recycled water?
Nationwide, approximately 13% of golf courses use recycled water for irrigation. More facilities would gladly convert to using recycled water, but the main limitation is the lack of a piping system to deliver the recycled water to golf courses, which can cost $1 million per mile or more to install.
How often do golf courses water the grass?
It's better to water “deeply and infrequently,” Cutler says. About a third of an inch every two to three days is a good goal.
Do California golf courses use reclaimed water?
Golf courses in Southern California using recycled water to keep grass green. Golf and green grass have long been a perfect pair, but some favor drastic measures when the region is in a drought. "I believe if it goes for one it goes for all," said Chino Hills resident Remon Meleka.
Why do golf courses need so much water?
Water use has a major influence on the playability of a golf course. Judicious water use that emphasizes firm, fast conditions is more enjoyable for all skill levels of golfers and is a goal that the USGA strongly supports.
What is water on a golf course called?
The USGA defines "casual water" or "temporary water" as "any temporary accumulation of water on the course that is not in a water hazard and is visible before or after the player takes his or her stance.” In other words, "casual water" is water on the golf course that isn't meant to be there by design.
How much water has the Water Authority paid out to golf courses?
The Water Authority has paid out more than $25 million to area golf courses to remove upwards of 1,000 acres of turfgrass, nearly 20% of all golf-course property in the area. This has conserved billions of gallons of water.
How much does a golf course in Vegas pay for water?
It’s not uncommon for Vegas golf courses to pay $1 million or more a year just for water. Next to labor, water’s the most expensive item in a course’s maintenance budget. In fact, conservation efforts have been so successful that the golf courses now use only 7% of the city’s total water consumption — less than the casinos.
How many golf courses are there in Las Vegas?
There aren’t even any cactus, just desert scrub like creosote, plus some cholla and Joshua trees. These contrasts clash on the Las Vegas area’s 56 golf courses, according to a recent count. A sizable percentage of the tens of millions of annual visitors to Las Vegas come here primarily to play golf on some of the finest courses in the country.
How much rain does Las Vegas get?
Las Vegas is the driest city of the 280 largest cities in the U.S. In an average year, it receives all of 4.5 inches of rain. (Phoenix gets twice as much.) In addition, the temperature ranges are fairly extreme for a desert, upwards of a 110-degree swing, with average lows in the 30s in December and January.
Is Las Vegas a water smart city?
But then the drought hit and by the early 2000s, a major area-wide conservation effort was put into place; since then, Las Vegas has become one of the most water-smart cities in the country.
Is golf course watering high tech?
Golf course watering is very high-tech, thanks to centrally controlled irrigation systems with their own on-site weather stations tied to the irrigation computer (so that watering is based on localized evapotranspiration data).
Shrinking supplies drive water-saving needs
Buschatzke began with an overview of Arizona’s worsening water challenges, including the declining reservoirs of the Colorado River, which store water that flows through the Central Arizona Project Canal to desert cities from Scottsdale to Tucson.
Many golf courses use groundwater
Buschatzke replied that he and his staff “recognize the need to have a program that allows the golf industry to continue to move forward.” He said they’ll continue to accept comments about any of the proposals.
Grappling with a 'drier future'
One subject that came up only once during the meeting was climate change, when Buschatzke briefly uttered the words and referred to the “long-term effects finally hitting us from the drier future.”
How much water does an 18 hole golf course use?
Depending on the location of the golf course and the climate, an 18-hole course can use on average 2.08 billion gallons of water per day. Depending on the amount of water needed, a typical golf course can spend between $7,000 and $108,000 per year. However, many courses use various methods to water their turfgrass spaces to help limit their need ...
Why is there more demand for water?
As well as trying to reduce pollution, rising temperatures have seen more demand on water supplies that has to be managed to ensure there is always fresh water available. Over the past few years, more countries have had to impose water restrictions and spend more money on their infrastructure to ensure no water is lost.
What is a wetting agent?
Wetting Agents. Wetting agents are used by many courses to help the irrigation process. The agent is sent along the pipes with the water to lower the surface tension. This allows the water to pass easily through the soil and spread further.
How is water extracted from a shaft?
A shaft is dug down to the water source , and then the water is extracted for irrigation. As with ground-level water, the levels can fluctuate through the year and can also be used by municipal water companies as well.
Do grasses need irrigation?
This grass also needs irrigation , but that increases the demand for water. To counteract this, some courses have removed the areas of grass that are not needed and replaced it with cacti can desert-loving plants. These need little irrigation, and they are also a good contrast to the green fairways and greens.
Do golf courses use water?
Many countries have now imposed water restrictions on all of the businesses and farms that use water and limited the amount they can use in a year. Golf courses have a two-fold use for water. The first and greatest use is on the maintained turfgrass.
Can grasses tolerate salt water?
However, research has been going on into alternatives that not only need less water but can also handle more salt. Poor quality water often has a higher salt content, which can be bad for the grasses. By increasing their tolerance, water from more sources can be used.