In many ways they seem like strange bedfellows but in fact golf courses and Audubon International are on the same side.
They are both trying to prove that golf courses aren’t, or at least don’t need to be, the evil villains that many environmentalists make them out to be.
“Golf has evolved over time to be a much more environmentally aware and environmentally conscious sport and business,” says Christine Kane, CEO of Audubon International.
“Twenty years ago, golf was looked at as using too much water, and too many chemicals, so it was not seen as an environmental ally. Over the years that has changed for the better.”
So, while Audubon International is willing to stand shoulder to shoulder with golf courses in the battle for the hearts and souls of the general public, it’s surprising how few Canadian facilities have taken advantage of it.
Barely more than 80 of the thousands of golf courses across Canada have joined the Audubon Co-operative Sanctuary Program for Golf.
Okay, it’s not as simple as just signing up. There is a program you have to go through to receive certification, and yes, there is a cost.
It’s $350 (US) a year to be a member of Audubon International. Once you become certified, and you go through a recertification program every three years, you have the right to advertise your golf facility as an Audubon Co-operative Sanctuary Program for Golf.
The program is designed to continue the environmental improvement that golf is going through and to provide a way for the golf industry, the non-playing public, and golfers, to see how they’re doing.
“The ACSP Program for Golf has six areas that golf courses must achieve before they can be certified,” says Kane.
“First, everyone has to start with a site assessment and environmental plan. You have to see where you are to know where you’re going. You have to provide us with that information so we can help you with suggestions and information. You have to do that first then the next five you can do in whatever order makes the most sense for you.”
The other five categories that have to be addressed are: water conservation, water quality management, chemical use reduction and safety, wildlife and habitat management and outreach and education.
Kane says that some of those are self-explanatory like trying to reduce your water and making the most efficient use of water through design and technology.
Managing wildlife habit is one area that really seems to strike a chord with both golfers and non-golfers alike.
“Many golf courses have excellent opportunities for both long-term habitat use and migratory habitat use for birds and other animals,” said Kane.
“On average, about 30 per cent of a golf course property is actually used for golf and the rest is out of play areas, or facilities, so there are plenty of opportunities to create native areas. That could be by removing invasive plants and replanting with native plants that birds, or foxes, or deer, or monarch butterflies, that need milkweed, can use.”
That’s one aspect of the program that Tom Newton is quite familiar with. He’s the senior golf superintendent for the Niagara Parks Commission and oversees their three golf courses.
The two courses at Legends on the Niagara were certified ACSP for Golf in 2014 and recertified last year. He’s also in the process of getting certification for their Whirlpool Course.
As a result of improving the wildlife habitat at Legends, Newton says they regularly see deer, wild turkey, foxes, coyotes, Canada geese, bald eagles, hawks, and endangered snapping turtles, as well as an abundance of fish in their ponds.
The turtles have taken to laying their eggs in the sand traps and the maintenance staff, who have come to feel a connection with the program, immediately fence that small area of the bunker off with a sign explaining why and advising golfers to take a free drop somewhere else in the trap.
“I’m passionate myself about doing the right thing for the environment,” said Newton.
So, if you’re a golf course owner or general manager why should you be thinking about talking to your superintendent about Audubon Sanctuary Certification?
“The main benefit is doing the right thing,” says Kane. “From a business perspective there are certainly marketing and positioning benefits to be realized. We encourage courses to use this in their marketing to set themselves apart from their competition.
“We hear that in private clubs it instills a sense of ownership among the members and a sense of camaraderie among the employees.”
Audubon provides logos to certified member clubs that can even be incorporated into club merchandise.
Kane also provides this food for thought.
“The next generation of golfers, the millennials and the Gen Zs are going to expect this,” she says. “They’re going to expect that everyone should be doing their part for the environment.
“Very soon we’re going to reach the point where if your golf course is not doing this then you’re going to stick out and that’s a big change. I think this is going to be a big wake up call for a lot of owners.”
For more on the Audubon Co-operative Sanctuary Program for Golf, you can visit their website at: https://www.auduboninternational.org/acspgolf
Certified Audubon Co-operative Sanctuary Program for Golf Members in Canada
Beacon Hall Golf Club, Ontario
Beaconsfield Golf Club, Quebec
Bigwin Island Golf Club, Ontario
Cabot Cliffs, Nova Scotia
Cabot Links, Nova Scotia
Calgary Golf and Country Club, Alberta
Canmore Golf & Curling Club, Alberta
Capilano Golf and Country Club, British Columbia
Cardinal Golf Club, Ontario
Cedar Brae Golf and Country Club, Ontario
Cordova Bay Golf Course, British Columbia
Country Hills Golf Club, Alberta
D’Arcy Ranch Golf Club, Alberta
Donalda Club, Ontario
Earl Grey Golf Club, Alberta
Fairmont Banff Springs Golf Course, Alberta
Fairmont Chateau Whistler Golf Club, British Columbia
Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge Golf Club, Alberta
Fairmont Le Château Montebello Golf Club, Quebec
Fraserview Golf Course, British Columbia
Glen Abbey Golf Club, Ontario
Gleneagles Golf Course, British Columbia
Granite Golf Club, Ontario
Greensmere Golf and Country Club, Ontario
Hamilton Golf and Country Club, Ontario
Highland Pacific Golf, British Columbia
Highwood Golf and Country Club, Alberta
Hillsdale Golf and Country Club, Quebec
Innisfail Golf Club, Alberta
King’s Riding Golf Club, Ontario
Ladies’ Golf Club of Toronto, Ontario
Lake Joseph Golf Club, Ontario
Legends on the Niagara, Ontario
Lethbridge Country Club, Alberta
Links at Crowbush Cove Golf Course, Prince Edward Island
Loyalist Country Club, Ontario
Markham Green Golf Club, Ontario
Markland Wood Golf Club, Ontario
McCleery Golf Club, British Columbia
Mississaugua Golf and Country Club, Ontario
Mount Bruno Country Club, Quebec
Oakdale Golf and Country Club, Ontario
Olds Central Highlands Golf Course, Alberta
Oslerbrook Golf and Country Club, Ontario
Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club, Limited, Ontario
Paradise Canyon Golf Resort, Alberta
Petawawa Golf Club, Ontario
Pheasant Run Golf Club, Ontario
Point Grey Golf and Country Club, British Columbia
Priddis Greens Golf and Country Club, Alberta
RiverBend Golf Club – Community, Ontario
Rivermead Club de Golf, Quebec
Rocky Crest Golf Club, Ontario
Royal Mayfair Golf Club, Alberta
Royal Ottawa Golf Club, Quebec
Salmon Arm Golf Club, British Columbia
Scarboro Golf and Country Club, Ontario
Silvertip Resort, Alberta
Springfield Golf and Country Club, Ontario
St. Charles Country Club, Manitoba
St. George’s Golf and Country Club, Ontario
St. Thomas Golf and Country Club, Ontario
Station Creek Golf Club, Ontario
Stewart Creek Golf & Country Club, Alberta
Stonebridge Golf Club, Ontario
Summerlea Golf and Country Club, Quebec
Sunningdale Golf and Country Club, Ontario
The Glencoe Golf and Country Club, Alberta
The Ridge at Manitou Golf Club, Ontario
The Rock Golf Club, Ontario
The Royal Montreal Golf Club, Quebec
The Toronto Golf Club, Ontario
The Winston Golf Club, Alberta
Thornhill Country Club, Ontario
Turner Valley Golf and Country Club, Alberta
Uplands Golf Club, British Columbia
Vancouver Parks Board – Langara Golf, British Columbia
Westview Golf Club, Ontario
Whistler Golf Club, British Columbia
Whitevale Golf Club, Ontario
Whitlock Golf and Country Club, Quebec
Willow Park Golf and Country Club, Alberta
Wooden Sticks Golf Club, Ontario
York Downs Golf and Country Club, Ontario
