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Presented in partnership with Aquatrols YOUR WATER
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A world of water solutions
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| Photo by Scott Hollister |
You may have taken the kids to Water World, but that was nothing like the world of water being assembled this month in Las Vegas at the inaugural WaterSmart Innovations Conference and Exposition.
Hosted by the Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA) in partnership with the Environmental Protection Agency and other national and international organizations, the event, set for Oct. 8-10 at the South Point Hotel and Casino, is being billed as the world’s largest urban water-efficiency and conservation conference. On tap will be educational sessions, workshops and technical tours and exhibits featuring water-saving technologies from around the world.
SNWA has garnered international recognition for its programs promoting water conservation and efficient water use. Coupled with mandatory restrictions and SNWA-instituted rebate programs, southern Nevada’s consumptive water use dropped by about 18 million gallons between 2002 and 2006, a time when the region gained more than 330,000 new residents and had about 40 million annual visitors.
The conference is particularly important for the golf industry, SNWA’s conservation manager Doug Bennett told GCM.
“In Southern Nevada, the golf industry accounts for 7 percent of total water use, about the same amount as the Las Vegas region’s resort sector,” he said. “Since golf courses use all of their water consumptively, they have significant impact on our water resources. Golf courses, however, have shown excellent performance in improving water efficiency.
“Golf course water budgets were established in 2003 in collaboration with industry professionals,” Bennett noted. “These budgets successfully affected conservation among the courses with the highest per-acre water use, while leaving courses that were already efficient unaffected. One of the primary ways golf courses have conserved water is through landscape redesign. Areas of turf that are out of play have been converted to drought-tolerant trees, shrubs and flowering plants.
“Collectively, 28 of the region’s 51 golf facilities have converted about 610 acres of turf to other plantings and surfaces. Not every golf course has implemented such changes; some of the courses were already designed to be highly efficient and others have modified their irrigation strategies to produce savings. The SNWA estimates that these landscape design improvements account for almost 1.5 billion gallons of water savings annually.
“Southern Nevada’s golf industry has teed-up instead of getting teed-off,” Bennett said. “We have an excellent working relationship with both the superintendents and the owners. Not only have they improved water efficiency, they’ve used their conversions and rebate incentives to improve the appearance and operation of their courses. Our golf industry has shown their ability to improve water efficiency while improving the quality of the course and the golfing experience. That’s what efficiency is all about.”
GCM editor Scott Hollister will attend the conference, and you can get an insider’s look by following him on GCM’s blog. For more information on the conference, visit www.WaterSmartInnovations.com.
The golf industry needs to act quickly to address water supply and conservation issues before strict and potentially damaging regulations are enacted, according to Troubled Waters: Golf’s Future in a Thirsty World, a new report from the National Golf Course Owners Association. Comprising interviews with several water experts inside and outside the golf world, the report demonstrates why the industry needs to present its case that its water use is clean and efficient to scientists, politicians and the public. A complement to GCSAA’s survey of superintendents regarding water use and conservation, which will be released later this year, the report is available in full to NGCOA members starting Oct. 15, while an executive summary is free on the association’s Web site to members and nonmembers after that date. Visit www.ngcoa.org for more information. |
