THE CHEMICAL CONUNDRUM

Transcription

1 ENVIRONMENT The Environment of Environmentalism Modern day musings on the status of turf management By Rob Witherspoon The game of golf evolved on the grassy, wind swept links land of coastal Scotland. Golf courses were designed by the powers of nature. Turf was groomed by sheep and other grazing animals. Golf and golf course maintenance have come a long way from the grassy links of Scotland. Along with titanium golf clubs and solid core "hot" balls have appeared refined turfgrass varieties, high tech mowing equipment, computerized irrigation systems and highly scientific turf management techniques. Sheep have been relegated to lesser green pastures as golf course superintendents strive to meet the high expectations of a generation of golfers raised on a diet of televised golf played on pristine greens. Their job is complicated by the fact that golf is often played in a wide range of environments where grass would not normally grow without our intervention. At the same time as the TV Generation developed a taste for pixilated perfection, anti-pesticide sentiment surfaced, first introduced to the public consciousness in publications such as Rachel Carson's Silent Spring. This book, published in 1962, raised concerns about the environmental impact of the first generation of synthetic pesticides like the infamous DDT. From a turf perspective, it climaxed last year with the Supreme Court of Canada decision that municipalities have the right to ban pesticides on both public and private land should they have the political will to do so. Additionally, although Canada has not wholly felt its impact just yet, there is a global water shortage (some would say crisis) and water use restrictions are becoming prevalent in certain markets. Not to mention that soil is getting tired and needs fertilizer to continue producing healthy vegetation. Where does this leave the desire for beautiful, weed and pest free golf courses? Is there a future for highly manicured golf courses? Can the same economic return be derived from a golf course that is less than perfect due to a lack of chemical tools to manage the insects, diseases and weeds that are constantly encroaching upon the turf? How can perfect greens exist without enough water to help them flourish? THE CHEMICAL CONUNDRUM Since the first greenskeeper, Old Tom Morris of St. Andrews, first set spade to soil, superintendents have enthusiastically embraced their role as stewards of the

2 environment. Unlike the pest control business, economic success in golf is not dependent upon pesticide application. Pesticide and fertilizer use in golf course maintenance is normally applied on an as-needed basis. Especially given that excess application is a waste of resources and cuts into the bottom line. As in many other respects, Canada is a diverse country relative to golf course management techniques as well as golfer expectations. The hot, humid climate of southeastern Canada is radically different from the prairies, mountains, northern and coastal regions. Insect and disease pressure is different in each region as is the amount of play received by each golf course. To some extent, even golfer expectations vary from region to region and from urban to rural areas of the same region. No doubt the expectation of the urban, private club member may be completely different from a rural once-a-month golfer. While it can generally be said that properly managed golf courses have minimal negative impact on the environment, this has not always been the case. In the past, the golf course industry has used products that have had a significant and persistent environmental impact. Until quite recently, mercury-based fungicides were used to provide the long term residual effect required to control damaging snow mould fungi. Beyond a lot of the negative and sensational aspects of the environmental movement, it cannot be denied that it has placed the entire industry under increasing scrutiny and provided impetus for change in how golf courses are managed now and into the future. As a result of the Supreme Court decision, pesticide use now has the potential to be regulated by all three layers of government. The federal government registers pesticides for use in Canada through the Pest Management Regulatory Agency and has recently introduced new legislation to overhaul and update the regulatory process. Provincial governments are responsible for regulating the applicators of pest control products. And now, the Supreme Court decision has given municipalities the opportunity to regulate the use of pesticides on both public and private lands within their boundaries. Imagine the problems that would be faced by a golf course owner who is not allowed to use pesticides while a nearby competitor in an adjacent rural municipality may have no municipally imposed restrictions. It is a challenging debate, made more complex by the fact that scientific realities are often misrepresented and distorted and most municipalities do not have sufficient resources to effectively investigate the issue. Decisions may be made more on emotional and political grounds than a true examination of the reality of the risks and benefits of pesticide use. Only a limited number of municipalities have drafted or enacted plans for pesticide reduction or elimination. Many more local councils under pressure from constituents and activists, are headed in directions that could lead to banning pesticide use completely on public and private lands. Within the turf industry, groups have formed to deal with the potential patchwork of municipal bylaws controlling pesticide use. Although lawn care operators are on the

3 front lines of the debate, golf course owners, superintendents and associations, as well as others in the horticulture and agriculture industries, have joined the effort. They realize that banning pesticide use on private lands could easily be extended from lawns to golf courses and other maintained landscapes and perhaps even to agricultural lands within a municipality. The most effective responses to local council initiatives have been presentations by local business people in the green industry. Messages that convey responsible use along with the potential economic and social impact of pesticide bans are proving to be the most effective arguments against total pesticide bans. STEWARDSHIP PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE Golf course superintendents and owners have embraced, with varying degrees of enthusiasm, programs like the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuaries program which promotes landscapes that provide sanctuaries for wildlife. As we know, the Audubon program provides a step by step process by which golf course properties can be certified as providing an environment where the natural and managed areas coexist with minimal negative impact from the maintained turf areas. The Canadian Golf Superintendents Association (CGSA) has taken a proactive stance also in dealing with golf and the environment. The CGSA has published the Environmental Management Resource Manual, a comprehensive outline of the various aspects of environmental management with a focus on responsible and accountable environmental stewardship. The manual is distributed to every CGSA superintendent member and is updated regularly. In February, the CGSA received an environmental award from the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America for their efforts in developing the resource manual. The manual is also a component of a distance certificate program in Golf Course Environmental Management offered by the University of Guelph. Study tools, seminars and continuing education initiatives are offered throughout the career of a every modern superintendent to increase knowledge, awareness and improve overall turf management skills. The turf industry has embraced Integrated Pest Management (IPM) as a possible middle ground between the more moderate environmental activists and the distorted perception of the industry as being "chemically dependent" on pesticides. Efforts at developing IPM certification programs are underway in many regions including major efforts in Quebec, Ontario and British Columbia. IPM, as defined by the federal Pest Management Regulatory Agency, is a decision making process that uses all necessary techniques to suppress pests effectively, economically and in an environmentally sound manner to sustain healthy landscapes.

4 The key elements of IPM include; planning and management to prevent organisms from becoming pests, identification and monitoring of pest populations, monitoring and encouraging beneficial organisms, monitoring the turfgrass environment, establishing the maximum amount of damage from pests that is acceptable and using pesticides with minimal environmental impact only when absolutely required. Progressive superintendents have been practicing the principles of IPM since the days of Old Tom Morris. In the face of increased regulatory pressure, it becomes imperative for all golf courses to practice IPM and most importantly, keep accurate records of pest management efforts and constantly evaluate and improve pest management efforts. The golf industry is facing a similar challenge in the United States. In New York, Cornell University is conducting an investigation into pesticide free golf course maintenance at the Bethpage State Park golf facility. Bethpage is a multi-course operation which includes the Black Course, host of this year's U.S. Open championship. In the first year of the study, several of the pesticide-free greens were lost. The death of the turf was attributed to a combination of heavy dollar spot disease infection and heavy golfer traffic. A similar study is being considered to identify the challenges of managing pesticide-free golf turf under Ontario conditions. An equally significant environmental issue facing the golf course industry is water - both quantity and quality. Recent droughts in several regions of Canada have resulted in serious water use restrictions. The tragic events at Walkerton have raised public concern about how drinking water systems are impacted by land use in their communities. Water quality for irrigation use is also a significant concern in some areas. Golf courses are a very visible user of water and will be coming under even more intense public scrutiny in terms of how they use local water resources. Does all of this spell the end of green golf courses? Are we destined to play the game on diseased, weed-infested turf? Will golfers pay a premium price to play on a golf course that is less than pristine? Can a combination of industry innovation and technological advances through research allow us to eliminate synthetic pesticides as a management tool? THE NATURAL ANSWER Pesticide reduction research has been underway for over a decade and has already begun to yield results. An excellent example is the search for an effective control of snow mould fungi. It is estimated that 50 per cent of fungicides applied on golf courses in Canada are applied for the control of snow mould. Up until only a few years ago, the fungicides of choice were mercury-based fungicides. The long residual effect of mercury provided excellent control of the fungus as the control must be applied in the fall and persist through the winter to combat the fungus which can cause devastating damage given that it grows under prolonged snow cover. However, the fact that mercury was a very toxic heavy metal motivated regulatory

5 agencies to phase out the use of this product. Is has been replaced with fungicides of lower toxicity. As it was becoming evident that mercury-based fungicides were on the way out, turf pathologists at the University of Guelph turfgrass institute began looking for alternative controls. A team lead by Dr. Tom Hsiang isolated a related fungus that, when applied to turf, prevented snow mould damage as effectively as the chemical fungicides. This biological control fungus was isolated from corn stubble and does not attack living plants. Similar research continues at Guelph and other turf research centres across Canada. Other new research areas are developing as a result of public pressure to minimize pesticide use. Corn gluten meal is being used to prevent the germination of weed seeds. As part of a national research effort, Dr. Alan Watson at McGill University in Montreal discovered a fungal strain that attacks broadleaved weeds like dandelion and plantain. It is currently being developed into a marketable product. A variety of new biologically based insect control products are available or under development. There are two major challenges facing the marketability of biologically based pest control products. The first is ecological, in that many do not perform as well as synthetic pesticides in as broad a range of environments. This effect is most noticeable in some of the biological control products that have been developed for white grubs. Products that work well in warmer areas of the United States have not performed as well in Canadian climates. In many cases, biological control organisms that work well in laboratory situations do not transfer well to the field. Biological control products are often living organisms, creating special challenges in their handling and application. The second challenge relates to government regulation and registration of these materials. All pest control products sold in Canada must undergo extensive efficacy and toxicological testing before they can be released and sold. The cost of the laboratory work required by this process can easily cost several million dollars. Most of the synthetic pesticides used on Canadian golf courses are also widely available and registered for use in the United States and other countries around the world. Many of the products are also used in other landscape applications or on agricultural crops. Conversely, biologically based pest control products are much more specific and may only have application on golf courses within a specific ecological zone. If you consider the size of the golf course market relative to other "crops" such as rice, wheat and corn, the willingness of investors to provide the large capital investments required to develop specific biological control products is much more limited. The federal government is beginning to appreciate the need to change the regulatory process to provide a more reasonable process for the registration of new biological products. New legislation will hopefully provide the impetus for increased investment in research activities.

6 Progress is also being made in the area of turf breeding. The controversial process of genetic modification is being applied to turfgrass species. "Round-up ready" technology should be available in bentgrass very soon. This would allow the use of Round-up, a very low toxicity herbicide, to be used to keep weeds like annual bluegrass (Poa annua) from encroaching on putting greens. Although this may seem counter intuitive in terms of pesticide reduction, it would actually aid in overall pesticide reduction as annual bluegrass is more susceptible than creeping bentgrass to certain disease and insect pests. There is also a significant research effort to develop a variation of Poa annua into a viable golf course grass. In order to distinguish the new grass from its less welcome cousin, scientists are calling the new grass creeping bluegrass or Poa reptans. A selection process is underway throughout North America to find and develop varieties that have good disease, insect and stress resistance. Improved techniques and increased activity in the composting of organic wastes is not only providing environmental benefits, but is also surprisingly useful in golf course management. Composted wastes have been shown to have the ability in some cases to suppress common turfgrass diseases. Golf courses have the potential to utilize composted wastes produced both within the golf course operation as well as those coming in from other sources. It should be noted that golf courses have been using fertilizers produced from municipal sewage for decades. Although not as common in Canada as more arid countries, the use of effluent water is increasingly being considered for new and existing courses where water availability is a concern. Technology has provided extremely accurate application equipment. This, coupled with new developments in water management in turf means that superintendents are becoming much more efficient in their use of what is quickly becoming a very valuable public commodity. IT'S COMPLICATED Over the years since Old Tom Morris became the first "keeper of the green", golf course management has become more and more technically complex. If Old Tom were to walk into a modern turf maintenance facility, he may not recognize any equipment beyond a shovel or spade. Superintendents require continuous training to deal with challenging environmental issues facing the industry. Ongoing research is required to provide the level of turf quality golfers demand while still allowing golf courses to be economically viable businesses - keeping in mind, of course, that they always have to ensure these products have minimal environmental impact. Golf course owners and others in the industry can support these efforts by helping to educate their clients as to the challenges facing the golf course industry, encouraging their staff to continuously upgrade their professional skills and by supporting turfgrass research.

7 It's that simple - and that complicated. ROB WITHERSPOON Rob Witherspoon has a M.Sc. in Environmental Horticulture and has been Director of the Guelph Turfgrass Institute & Environmental Research Centre at the University of Guelph since He can be reached by at rob@gti.uoguelph.ca.