By Brian McCullough, Journal Register News Service

A new handbook that advises superintendents on ways they can make their golf courses more environmentally friendly highlights the practices at two area clubs.

The RiverCrest Golf Club and Preserve near Phoenixville and Kennett Square Golf and Country Club in East Marlborough were highlighted in the handbook prepared by the Pennsylvania Environmental Council.

RiverCrest uses an on-site wastewater treatment plant to meet its irrigation needs. Using the wastewater, which is partially treated and would otherwise be discharged directly into a nearby stream, saved the course $4,000 per month in water costs during the golf season, the environmental council noted.

Additionally, RiverCrest uses a rain can to calculate and adjust the amount of irrigation needed based on rainfall, reducing over-irrigation.

Kennett Square Golf Club started a compost pile where it plans to plant a flower bed. The compost pile saves labor, time and money to prepare with high-quality soil, and reduces the amount of materials sent to the dump, the council said.

The club was also highlighted for its use of a rain garden and its work to remove invasive plant species.

The handbook is meant to show golf courses how others have handled environmental situations to give them ideas for their own operations, and also provides contacts to discuss their experiences, said Scott van de Mark, director of special projects at the Pennsylvania Environmental Council. It provides information about how practices, such as created or restored wetlands and natural floodplains, can generate additional value for the courses.

The handbook also includes techniques for capturing and mitigating stormwater runoff and increasing groundwater recharge at golf courses. The stormwater management practices can be integrated with local watershed management strategies in cooperation with local municipalities.

Such is the case at Kennett Golf, where the club is working with the Red Clay Valley Association, East Marlborough and the Chester County Conservation District to restore 2,100 feet of stream banks on the course, said superintendent Paul Stead.

The parties have applied for a $390,000 Growing Greener Grant from the state Department of Environmental Protection to help pay for the $700,000 project that would stabilize banks of the east branch of the Red Clay Creek.

Golf courses are not always seen as a friend to the environment because of their uses of fertilizers and pesticides. Stead believes that's changing.

"Where 20 years ago it was, 'Mow it down and make it easier to take care of,' today there are a lot more natural areas," Stead said. "It's becoming more acceptable for golfers and for superintendents."

Van de Mark agreed there's a greater awareness that golf courses have environmental impacts, and that's leading to changes in how they're operating.

"Golf courses become managed landscapes, and many of them see there's an opportunity to do a lot of good things for the watershed," Van de Mark said.

Jeff Broadbelt, general manager at Spring Hollow Golf Course in Spring City and an adviser to the council in developing the handbook, also believes environmental practices at golf courses are improving.

"Any big landowner, from corporate centers to farmers, have an impact on their habitats, and golf courses are no different," said Broadbelt, who is also a member of the East Whiteland Planning Commission.

Pesticides are safer today, and fertilizers are also better, Broadbelt said. "But probably the biggest thing is superintendents' knowledge has gotten much more advanced."

On the Net:

www.pecpa.org/gchandbook