 |
Presented in partnership
|
California energy program makes (dollars and) sense for golf courses
|
For many superintendents, nursing a creaky old irrigation system through another season of golf is a badge of honor. But if a new pilot program being initiated in Southern California proves successful, the need to struggle through that experience might never arise again.
Southern California Edison’s Agriculture Energy Efficiency Program for Golf Course Customers is putting the utility’s money where its mouth is in terms of energy conservation, and eventually maybe even water conservation. The public utility is offering cash incentives based on the amount of energy savings achieved for facilities that upgrade or replace old irrigation equipment with newer, more energy efficient technology. In some cases, the incentives could be enough to offset the cost of the upgrades.
Andrew Staples, a golf course design and construction consultant who is president of Golf Resource Group, is overseeing the three-year pilot program for SCE. With a little more than 300 golf courses within SCE’s service area, the program’s goal is to entice 85 facilities into upgrading their irrigation systems by the end of 2008.
The program works like this: Following an application process, Staples and a team of technical experts will conduct a phone interview with facility operators to gather basic information about that course’s irrigation system, historical electricity consumption in kilowatt hours and specifics about the management of the site. Following that, a site visit will take place to gather more detailed information and conduct equipment testing. Facility operators pay nothing for these evaluations.
Based on this analysis, a report will be generated for facility operators that details just how much energy a course can expect to save annually and how much of an incentive they can expect to receive from SCE with the installation of a more modern irrigation system. For example, a facility that uses 1,000,000 kilowatt hours per year might be able to trim that to 650,000 kWh per year with a new irrigation system, which would result in a $28,000 payment from SCE.
Facility operators obviously can expect an upgraded irrigation system to generate savings in water consumption as well. At first, that will simply be a bonus for participants, although Staples expects that aspect will be formalized within the program, much like the electricity savings, somewhere down the road.
Chris Morris, an account executive with SCE who works with the utility’s golf course customers, reports that in the first few months of the program, 18 golf courses have signed up to
participate.
Among the industry companies that have pitched in to help with the implementation of this program is IT Flowtronix, the pump station manufacturer that will provide technical expertise to Staples and his team of consultants.
Ready to save money on your water costs? “Developing Best Management Practices for Golf Course Water Conservation” can help you make the most of your water budget. Sign up today for GCSAA’s half-day seminar on Feb. 23, which will teach you how to plan, write and implement site-specific BMPs. Contact GCSAA Education, 800-472-7878 (www.gcsaa.org/education). To learn the basic principles to saving your facility money, take W.A.T.E.R. for Efficient Water Management, an online course available from GCSAA. Visit the education section of www.gcsaa.org to learn more. |
RECENT issues
 |
 |
January |
December 2006 |