Gimme some water: California drought far from over

As Eddie Money once sang, “Gimme some water.” Water is the world’s most precious resource. I hear that statement or versions of it made all the time, and I believe it.

When you live east of the Mississippi River surrounded by the Great Lakes and rivers like the Ohio, it is hard to fully appreciate what it means to deal with a lack of water, or water that is costly and of poor quality. Unfortunately, this is a daily occurrence in the western United States, especially in a state like California.

In the past year the national news was continually running stories on the severity of the California drought. In December, heavy rains and mudslides in California washed the drought off the front pages. However, a recent visit to northern California revealed that the drought is far from over.

With no rain in January, and with a below-normal snowpack, the coming year is shaping up to be a tough one for most of the state. The water issue facing California is forcing hard choices, and one of the most polarizing images, or more likely, the lightning rod for discussion, is golf courses.

I attended and spoke at a Northern California GCSA seminar, where I learned firsthand the water issues facing northern California superintendents. The first thing I learned was water is a complex issue and no single solution fits all. For example, given the hundreds of water districts, geological variations and water sources, the availability or allotment of water can vary in extremes from enough water to none.

Some of the thoughts that I took away from the meeting are:

Effluent water

Over the years, California golf courses have moved to effluent as a water source. Effluent implies too much undesirable water, but in some situations, the quality of effluent was better than the potable water source (stream, river, etc.) for irrigation. Some courses would like to rely on effluent even more. Interestingly, in some situations water conservation with effluent is not necessary desirable. The need to use the effluent water before it’s deposited in the ocean can result in water districts encouraging golf courses to use as much as possible.

Cost of water

Golf courses that were provided water cheaply by a city or district in years past are now raising rates significantly, resulting in golf clubs rapidly trying to find alternative water sources. In addition, a few California water districts have implemented turf rebates, which consist of paying homeowners and businesses like golf courses to remove turf areas and establish them to native or desert. In some instances, the cost of maintaining these areas will eventually be more than the rebate money received. But many golf courses believe it is the right thing to do.

Technically managed water

That’s what I call water judiciously managed by superintendents, which means continual measuring and monitoring for the purpose of applying irrigation as efficiently as possible. As the drought continues, turf areas that are watered shrink from tees, greens and landing areas in fairways, to no irrigation of fairways, to the point where the water just runs out. Unfortunately, golfers don’t always understand why they are playing on less than ideal
conditions.

Communication

Communication is a critical aspect in water management, not only with golfers but also with water district boards. One of the comments that stuck with me was a panelist who basically said these board members want to get re-elected, so they want to work with people or at least get as much input as they can. Superintendents and/or clubs need to be involved with the local water district, making it clear how the golf course uses water, and also getting involved in determining allotments.

Upon returning to cold and wet Ohio, I have a much deeper appreciation of the superintendents who deal with water issues, even if it is not covered in my local paper.