General Course Update
The courses once again continue to present at a prominent level and continue to cope well with the extra stress of high golf play levels. This will be tested in the months from May when the turf growth and recovery slows down and the warm season grass enters its dormancy low growth phase. Course maintenance and presentation priories continue to be focused on events around members/guests, corporate and our hosting of pennant rounds.
Our important focus tasks to position the courses for the onset of the cooler weather months are well in progress. These work tasks are listed in the below section titled “Current and Upcoming Course Program”. Course care initiatives will be prepared and rolled out by the golf shop and course teams to support the protection of the courses during the cooler months. Focus will continue to be on (pitch mark, divot and bunker repair), together with traffic management, motorised cart usage and plant care when the new planting program begins in May.
Our 2021/2022 Course Audit Review and approved 2022/2023 Course Improvement Projects will commence in Mid-May. The initial projects to commence the program of works will include.
- The exposed aggregate pathway to the 7th North Tee
- The synthetic turf strip and cart parking bays on the Lower Range Tee
- Drainage on the Practice Fairway
Details of each project will be included in the member updates prior to commencement.
As reported previously, a review on the impact from programmes delayed or unable to be implemented in spring when severe weather was present, and staff were operating on restricted hours remains in progress. The coming weeks/months will identify what impact occurs and allow for new programs that can implemented to make the necessary corrections. We are expecting a higher-than-normal level of Winter grass (Poa annua) percentage to be present in the couch grass areas in Autumn, as well as undesirable grass and weed presence in the rough and plantation areas that will require programs for control during winter and spring. It appears likely at this early stage that we will again require the use of non-selective herbicide program across the warm season grass areas on fairways and selected spot spraying with the tees and green surrounds. This has been very successful in recent years.
Water
3.5 Megalitres of storm water was collected in the recent week’s rainfall events (35mm). The dam level is at approximately 50% of its capacity.
An initial detailed Draft Water Report with a covering Executive Summary will be presented in April by our water consultants Field Development Planning – Principal Consultant Craig Flavel. The report will cover our studies on a MAR (Managed Aquifer Recharge) and ASR (Aquifer Storage and Recovery) schemes. A full review of the creek water system to increase its water volume, source water and have a permanent higher volume water circulation will soon support the above report.
An on site presentation will also be undertaken in May following feedback from the initial DRAFT Report.
Fencing Repair and Upgrade Work
Work has begun in preparation to complete the fencing repairs from tree damage in late 2021. Additional fencing upgrades will also continue across sections in our high-risk areas on the North, East, and West boundaries. This will provide important and significant risk reduction and enhanced security of our facility.
Current and Upcoming Course Programs Update
The below turf related programs are our KEY focus at present and particularly important in positioning the courses well for the onset of the cooler months.
- Autumn Turf Nutrition Program application. “In-Progress”
- Greens soil dusting programs. “In progress” – North Course Complete
- Warm season turf (Couch grass) autumn colourant application. “In-Progress”.
- Pre and post emergent weed control across our warm season grass areas of Green Surrounds, Tees, and Fairways. Commenced in March and concluding in May. “In Progress – North Course Complete”.
- Turf fungal disease prevention programs. “In-Progress”
- Selected soil top-dressing over drainage lines and uneven turf areas. “In-Progress and Ongoing”
- General bunker maintenance focused on edge/walk-in trimming, wall, and floor contouring & firming together with entry/exit point focus. “In-Progress and Ongoing”
- Algae control/prevention on fine turf green surfaces during moisture and humid climatic conditions. “In-Progress and Ongoing”
- Course Furniture – Seat cleaning, stabilising, and treatment. “In-progress”
- Boundary Fencing Repair and New installations. : In-Progress”.
- Annual Drainage Program preparation. “Likely commencement in mid-May”
Maintenance Facility / Risk Control Update
Work has been completed to install a new and updated video surveillance and security camera system throughout the maintenance facility . This will enable a higher level of security to the facility and plant items within, but importantly enable for a regular use of the camera system as a surveillance check on the higher risk procedural activities such as chemical handing and mixing, fuel use and filling, machinery hoist use and maintenance/fabrication tasks as part of our risk register controls.
New Pesticide cabinets have also been installed following an agreed recommendation from a recent Risk and Compliance Committee meeting held in the Maintenance Facility. The lockable cabinets will secure all greens related products together with those others that could pose the most significant risk or harm to the courses.
Key leadership staff members will also undertake the AQF3 Chemical Accreditation Course (ChemCERT). The aim of this course is to raise awareness of the potential hazards and risks associated with pesticide use and to provide practical information on the safe handling and application of chemicals. It is nationally recognised, valid for 5 years and qualifies you to legally use S7 chemicals unsupervised.
Staff Training / Education
Training has been successfully undertaken on several topics with the full team that have included, spill response and hazard management. Selected team members on certified and licensed training on forklift usage and in the coming week Chemical Accreditation Course (ChemCERT). Further training is also planned for chemical handling, spill kit and simulated spill response together with first aid and refresher courses.
The course team have also recently participated in an educational Climate and Awareness Workshop. The team now has a greater understanding and appreciation of climate science and climate change, its impacts on our operations, and adaptation and mitigation opportunities for our organisation. Terry Muir from epar delivered the workshop to help our team better understand the impacts of a changing climate and empower them with the knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes needed to act as agents of change.
During the workshop, staff reviewed impacts of a changing climate and the phenomena of rain-bombs, atmospheric water highways, the impacts of a warming ocean, storm events, the impacts on food, energy, transport, health, safety, and biodiversity. The team then examined the impacts should the planet warm by 1.5°C , 2 °C, 3°C, and 3.6°C and acted as decision-makers and action-takers using a climate simulator to identify actions and make decisions to limit global temperature rise well below 2°C with efforts to reach 1.5°C in line with The Paris Agreement.
The staff were logged into the MIT – Climate Interactive Simulator and commenced the simulation with a planet projected to warm by 3.6 °C by 2100. They went to work testing 18 climate-changing strategies. Between setting a price on carbon – taxing coal, oil, and gas – electrifying transport – subsidising renewables – halting deforestation and supporting afforestation – through to banking on some carbon capture technology – minimising methane emissions and reducing nitrous oxide emissions from fertiliser use- and many more climate strategies, they got to 1.8°C. But the team agreed that by mobilising stronger and more ambitious climate actions they could get to1.5°C. It wasn’t long before they did. This was a world first for golf, as this was the first climate workshop and MIT climate simulator exercise held for a golf course maintenance team.
Director of Courses
Glenn Stuart