Photograph by Jacqueline Ramseyer
Gary Carls, Sunnyvale Golf Course operations supervisor, discusses the city's plans to implement the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for Golf Courses. Carls is doing resource inventory which includes charting the wildlife that resides on the course and identifying what parts of the area can be utilized for the project.
Local golf course gets sanctuary minded
City enrolls in Audubon program to preserve, protect environment
By Jana Seshadri
The Sunnyvale Golf Course's recent enrollment in the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for Golf means a concentrated effort on the part of the city to preserve, protect and enhance the environment in the area.
"Out of a total of about 140 acres in that area, we maintain a little more than 100 acres for golf," said Gary Carls, golf operations supervisor for the city of Sunnyvale. "And golfers have access to 60 percent of that area."
Besides the manicured turf and fairways used exclusively for golf, there are untended wooded and marshy areas around the course that would receive more attention than before, Carls said.
"We take a close look at what we have and work to preserve and enhance them," he said.
Enrollment in the Audubon Society's Sanctuary Program entails an annual fee of $150 per course and completion of the required certification. The process encompasses several steps--enrollment, resource inventory, environmental planning, wildlife and habitat management, chemical use and reduction, water safety and conservation, water quality management and environmental outreach and education.
Sunnyvale's enrollment in the program, which started late last year, was a voluntary effort by the city, Carls said. Relatively new to the program, it is in the second stage of the certification process, inventory resource, he said.
"An aggressive schedule will take two to three years, but realistically, it will take approximately four to five years to complete all the steps of the certification," Carls said.
One of the areas of the program's concentration is to enhance and create wildlife habitats in and surrounding the course, he said. Since the ponds and marshy areas surrounding the course attract many birds, including ducks, geese and egrets, measures are being considered to preserve their habitat, he added.
"We are looking at raising the turf heights around the ponds--letting the grass grow higher--so that it would prevent fertilizer type chemicals and other things from getting into the ponds," Carls said.
Golfers might see few changes around the fairways at this point, he said. Unless they look closely in the grassy areas beside the fairways, not much will change for the golfer.
"They might feel that we are not cutting the grass often enough or short enough, but that's about it," Carls said.
The Audubon program would increase awareness about positive contributions by golfers to the environment and the community, Carls said. Preserving the orchards and wooded areas around the course--home to squirrels, rabbits and other small animals--would also create new habitats for more animals and encourage more wildlife, he added.
The Audubon Society gives suggestions and ideas, but it's ultimately up to the organization to accomplish what's required, Carls said. Regular reports of the city's efforts and achievements will be sent to the Audubon Society's New York offices. Once the golf course gets further into the certification process and has to deal with local and regional conservation issues, it might become involved with the local chapter of the society, he said.
Sunnyvale, California Since 1994
