tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38567863339152817002024-03-12T19:40:12.756-07:00ZerO Waste GolfThe mission of ZerO Waste Golf is to provide environmental leadership on the course and in the community through demonstration, participation and education of the benefits of zero waste, the reduced use of water and potentially harmful chemicals.richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.comBlogger45125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-22103000214234914272013-07-19T08:23:00.002-07:002013-07-19T08:23:39.908-07:00Zero waste golf course prompts change in community policySometimes when you plant seeds of one thing you get unexpected fruits.<br />
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We started our zero waste demonstration park to illustrate how a golf course could use its facilities to promote environmental awareness in the community it serves. We have been advocates of diverting green and food wastes from landfill as a matter of personal actions, that of home composting or worm binning, but there was no municipal compost system in place. But thing are changing.<br />
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Last week, I met with the management of our county wide waste management authority. He agreed to work his influence with the community waste hauling company to come up with a pilot program in which food wastes from participating summer festivals would be picked up and transported to the adjacent county where there is a state licensed composting operation. This is a breakthrough for our community.<br />
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First they'll develop a system for the festivals and events. Next, they'll provide pickup and hauling from restaurants and large food waste generators, like rest homes or schools. Next thing you know, we'll have community wide home pickup and hauling of food and green wastes.<br />
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It's interesting, isn't it? The golf course is proving to be a great place to promote environmental change. Policy makers are paying attention.richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-77304011000424698612013-05-14T07:43:00.002-07:002013-05-14T09:28:42.725-07:00Rebuilding Golf's Environmental ReputationIf you don't realize that the game of golf has a terrible reputation for the overuse of water and chemicals, you're not paying attention. If you ask any random person in the street, they'll probably tell you that golf is for the rich, idle class and that golf courses are harmful to the environment. But if you drill down further, you'll often find that those opinions are not founded in any first hand knowledge, but just a kind of "public intuition" that continues in spite any real improvements that are actually taking place in the industry or, locally, on the course.<br />
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The fact is that the today's golf industry is on the cutting edge of environmentall awareness. Few organizations or venues of any kind attend to environmental concerns more regularly than do the modern golf superintendent. It's too bad the modern methods for operating an environmentally sensitive golf course don't get the positive community attention they deserve.<br />
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Part of the problem is that the descriptors, the words we commonly use in our discussion of environmental issues are already tired, worn out and overused. "Sustainable, green, eco-friendly", you name it, the words just don't have any attention-getting pop any more. How in the world is the industry going to change it's bad environmental reputation if it doesn't craft a new language with which to get the public attention?<br />
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This is a problem that extends from the top to bottom of the industry. There is not much of a common thread between golf royalty, those great companies and organizations that seem to control golf's global public image, and the local courses that actually interact with the common golfer. When are the big boys going to figure out how to craft an environmental message that the whole industry can adopt to make a change in public perception?<br />
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I recently read, that in the US, environmental products and services are growing at a rate of 30 percent per year. That's a lot of growth, with the main problem being that there's going to need to be a lot more creative descriptors to market the ideas. Be as creative as you want, I doubt that anything in the golf industry is going to be invented that trumps the term "Zero Waste Golf".<br />
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In our experience at Dairy Creek, we're finding that our zero waste golf mantra is making inroads in our community perception. Now the topic is changed from the same old complaints about water and chemical overuse to one about community involvement, about environmental education and about healthy sports facilities for our families' recreational needs. Our golf course has become one of the most visible and heard environmental leaders in the community, and that's not because we're shouting. No, It's because we have the best, freshest message.<br />
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I'm believing that rebuilding golf's environmental reputation is going to begin with fresh language. I'm still waiting patiently to see if the term and the practices of "ZerO Waste Golf" is going to kick start the conversation.<br />
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<br />richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-85022920596569039202013-04-20T08:41:00.002-07:002013-04-20T08:41:26.706-07:00ZerO Waste Golf, what does it mean to you?ZerO Waste Golf reminds me not to waste strokes on the course. Nothing gripes me more than to waste a perfectly great drive by duffing my second shot.<br />
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ZerO Waste Golf reminds me to keep my head down and my eyes open for emerging opportunities. Opportunities are like inspirations. Anybody that wastes opportunities or inspirations is too dull to succeed on the golf course, anyway.<br />
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ZerO Waste Golf reminds me not to waste time on the course. I hate following slow play. ZerO Waste Golf reminds that when you feel it, step up and swing it . Come one guys, it's a ready-golf world out there.<br />
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ZerO Waste Golf reminds me that I'm not that great of a golfer. It reminds me that I'm on the golf course to have fun, not to compete with Tiger Woods. ZerO Waste Golf reminds me not to waste a moment of golf's fun.<br />
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<br />richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-68981967720954898542013-04-06T08:24:00.001-07:002013-04-06T08:24:53.016-07:00Jerry Nucci, ZerO Waste Golf PioneerSo often, in history, we hear the stories of pioneers, whose genuine dedication to simple projects have built the essential foundations of a better future. This is the case with the story of Jerry Nucci.<br />
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Five years ago, a few of my friends and I decided to promote zero waste through demonstrations of using worms bins and vessel composters to divert food and organic wastes from landfill and as a means of creating valuable soil ammendments. None of us had ever actually even used a worm bin or compost pile before, so it seemed appropriate to start learning how to be successful at building and maintaining a worm population, or a dynamic compost operation. So, I bought six pounds of worms online.<br />
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About five pounds of the redworms crawled away or died in the first week. They simply hated the environment I first created. Having seen worms naturally attracted to my test compost pile, I decided to throw my remaining worms into the compost.<br />
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My first attempt at composting wasn't going so well either. Seems that a compost won't start getting heat unless it has a particular volume, about a cubic meter. My wife and I didn't make enough food waste at home to give the demonstration the scale it required. Enter Jerry Nucci, owner of Nucci's Pizzaria, who started giving me all his pre-consumer lettuce wastes to put into the compost everyday. Discarding the outer leaves and the luttice hearts, that little restaurant produced an average of 20 pounds of lettuce per day. The worms really liked the lettuce scraps, and they prospered.<br />
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It was because of the success of that worm bin demonstration that county officials finally took serious note of our work, and they gave us a location and support to expand our vision. And that's how the ZerO Waste Park at Dairy Creek started.<br />
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I managed and maintained the worms and the composting at our park for the first year or so. Every day, I drove a couple of miles to the golf course, I gathered up the food wastes from the food and beverage concession, I fed the worms, I stirred the compost, I raked and swept. I gave and talks greeted the guests. I was getting tired, but I had not yet attracted any volunteers to help maintain the fledgling park. I was beginning to wonder if the project would actually become a sustainable program.<br />
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That's when Jerry Nucci offered to help me a couple of mornings per week. Jerry breathed life back into the gasping patient. After Jerry and I operated the park for another year, another fellow, Jim Matthias, offered to help as well. Now we have three workers, who contribute one or two hours per week each. Now it's easy.<br />
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Well, Jerry Nucci has had enough. He doesn't want to do the composting any more, but he will still bring his lettuce scraps to the worms. It's been five years since Jerry Nucci started supporting our zero waste park ideas. Without him, we would not be where we find ourselves today. The success we are enjoying today would have been impossible without the generous support of Jerry Nucci.<br />
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Jerry told me he was done on Monday. By Tuesday, Paul Van Beurdan volunteered to replace him. I really feel like the volunteer system for ZerO Waste Park maintenance is secured now, as we make our first replacements to our volunteer staff. This system looks like it will last. Free golf and cart for the volunteer compensation probably doesn't hurt, either!<br />
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Jerry Nucci went beyond the worm and compost demonstration. Jerry made a demonstration of contribution, of service and support. It's his demonstration of community activism that eventually attracted Jim, and eventually Paul, to become ZerO Waste Golfers. Thank you Jerry Nucci. Thank you for what you've done for the game of golf, what you've done for our community, and what you've done for me.<br />
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<br />richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-56767198008949667572013-03-21T17:34:00.000-07:002013-03-21T17:34:38.140-07:00ZerO Waste Golf is a Mantric Phrase<span style="font-size: x-small;">
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<span style="font-size: small;">In many cultures mantras are used, like computer icons, to represent complex ideas, or as a gateway to a state of awareness about a particular topic. A mantra is a reduction of the complexities of the concept. It works like this; A complex concept is reduced to a library, and then to a book, and then to a paragraph, a sentence, a phrase, a word, a sound. At this point, the sound represents the whole library. The beauty of a real mantra is that it works to represent whichever facet of the topic the individual is open to at any particular time, and that it continues to represent the idea as the individual grows into a more comprehensive awareness in time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">While our experience with the phrase "ZerO Waste Golf" is somewhat limited, we find that the mantric quality of the phrase seems to resonate with a wide audience. The phrase initiates discussion as to its meaning time after time. It's easy to find common ground in any discussion of the meaning of the phrase, as it allows for a great deal of positive creativity in the argument. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">It is my belief that zero waste will become the global standard for environmental policy making. It is already the official policy statement of the United States. Governments already know that the term zero waste gives them infinite latitude on defining the policy, without being too specific, and that works for them to maintain nonspecific regulatory control over the variety of potential definitions. The biggest problem with zero waste as a widly defined concept is in finding a specific action or demonstration that can be used to illustrate the policy. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">Zero Waste Golf is the type of specific action and demonstration that governing authorities can use to promote their goals for waste management awareness and actions to their constituents. It could be anticipated that different countries, cultures, regions or communities will have a variety of specific environmental problems or opportunities that are more important to that community than to others. ZerO Waste Golf has the flexibility to address those specifics, and should, as to serve the community's particular needs.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">The greatest opportunity for individual golf courses, acting in their communities, as well as for the golf industry in general, is to be the entity that introduces the zero waste mantra, and its library of possible meanings, to their communities, regions, countries and world. The golf industry, in step with, or in anticipation of toughening governmental restrictions, could become the world leader in zero waste consciousness. This type of leadership will help to overcome the perception of golf courses as the environmentally harmful havens of the rich minority. When the golf course, and the golf industry inspires the communities it serves to make positive environmental changes in its waste management protocols, the golf course opens itself to the community in a way that overcomes the perception that golf courses are only for the rich or elite.</span></span>richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-89309431278485858882013-03-19T18:35:00.000-07:002013-03-19T18:35:30.410-07:00Report :ZerO Waste Golf after two years of operationI'm happy to report that ZerO Waste Golf is turning out to be a great success as we begin our third year of operation.!<br />
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We were really hoping that our environmental demonstrations would inspire others in our community to join our efforts to divert food wastes and compostables from the landfill. We have hosted so many interested groups, businesses, students, scientists and others who came from as far away as New York to see our first in the nation operation. Now, we are really starting to see change in our community. Restaurants and institutions are really starting to get the idea about diverting their compostables from the landfill. In the past weeks, we have hosted 2 groups of restaurant and business owners who want to go zero waste in their operations. When they asked for advice from our waste management authority, they were referred to us , because of our experiences in the past couple of years.<br />
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When they realized, after dealing with us at Dairy Creek Golf Course, that all our local golf courses were lacking in proper waste and recycle containers, our regional waste management authority applied for and was granted a $100,000 dollar grant from the state of California with the purpose of purchasing some beautiful waste and recycling containers for each tee area on every course in the county. How wonderful, that our little demonstration has started to produce its fruits.<br />
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The US golf industry are getting to know that we're serious and they're starting to offer us support and funding for some of the scientific testing we're doing with California Polytechnic State University. Recently, we were contacted by interested golf developers about traveling to China to speak and to share information about the zero waste golf methods and trends that are developing around the country.<br />
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We operate the composting, vermiculture, and compost tea brewing with minimal labor. We have three volunteers who operate the whole deal in exchange for some free rounds of golf. There doesn't seem to be a lack of waiting volunteers who will do this duty for free golf, so we feel that the operation will continue well into the future, even as staff come or go throughout the years to come.<br />
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This blog, although it has been a while since I updated it, continues, day after day to spread the message about ZerO Waste Golf to interested persons around the globe. While it's not an astounding number, the blog averages 50 pageviews per day, day after day. The most interesting thing about the blog readership is that 40 or more out of the 50 per day come from Norway. Every day it's the same...ZerO Waste Golf is very popular in Norway. Thank you, Norwegians!<br />
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This has been a very enjoyable project so far. Environmental leadership is very rewarding when your work starts making a difference. Thank you everyone.<br />
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<br />richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-37131305149786423852012-08-30T07:32:00.001-07:002012-08-30T07:32:45.118-07:00Simple actions inspire changeAs a direct result of our efforts in developing the world's first zero waste golf course. we are seeing positive change in our local community.<br />
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When I first pitched zero waste to our golf superintendent, Josh Heptig, I pointed out that there were no recycle containers on the entire golf course property. Josh explained to me how the maintenance staff sorted the waste stream behind the scenes. Seemed reasonable, and we went on to other topics of zero waste discussion.<br />
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One of our first major zero waste partners, Bill Worrell of San Luis Obispo County's Integrated Waste Management Authority, who donated our two vessel composters, looked around the county and realized that NONE of the other golf courses had adequate recycle containers. So, Bill Worrell applied for a $220,000 grant from CalRecycle, got the money and is purchasing all new containers for every course in the county. That's 200,000 examples of how simple actions inspire change.<br />
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When my two friends and I started our environmental club, our first project was to host the waste management at Morro Bay's 2008 Harbor Festival. We promoted zero waste by sorting out compostables, reusables and recyclables from the festival waste stream. We constructed ZerO Waste Stations constructing plywood panels into three sided towers which gave us signage opportunities around which to place the various containers. We hosted the stations to offer information and assistance with the festival crowds. Today, almost every major event in the county utilizes similar hosted zero waste stations. A local Eco-Rotary club has adopted zero waste event management as a pillar of their club constitution, and do dozens of events every year since they chartered their club.<br />
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Simple actions inspire change.<br />
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Every step along the way of developing the ZerO Waste Park at Dairy Creek has been a very easy one. We never really did much, except a little politicing, a little carpentry, a little digging, etc....but the results or our efforts are beginning to show themselves as greater than that which inspired them. It's very satisfying to see that ones simple local actions can really inspire greater change in our global community.richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-48446349414871979632012-08-04T23:50:00.001-07:002012-08-04T23:50:06.617-07:00Zero waste is all about sorting.In today's increasing environmental awareness, sorting our waste streams into recyclables, reusables, compostables (and some trash) is a skill we all strive to perfect in our quest for zero waste. It's the same at Dairy Creek Zero Waste Park, where we all work together to reduce the amount of contamination in the sorted catagories.<br />
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We have organized our clubhouse compost, recycle and trash recepticles and placed signage instructing golfers and course staff where to place the various items we expect to generate on site. Sometimes unspecified items come in from offsite or confused depositors put the wrong items in the wrong can. That's OK, When we empty the cans, we sort again to fish recyclables out of the trash can, and trash or compost out of the recyclables.<br />
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The food waste is often contaminated as well. What we encounter in the food wastes we get from the kitchen is plastic wraps, straws, rubber gloves, aluminum foil and little plastic dipping sauce cups. We fish the plastic out of the food wastes as we load it into the compost vessel. Sometimes we miss some plastic and we just keep picking it out of the composter or finally, out of the finished compost before it's used on the course.<br />
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Sorting and processing is what we're all tasked to do, whether at work or at home. No longer can we leave it all up to someone else to unwrap the stinking sandwich from the plastic wrap before we throw it in the trash. Take a minute and unwrap it and throw the plastic in the reclycler and the sandwich in the compost, OK? If we really care about the local or global environment, we should all take a minute more to sort or process any waste products with which we come into contact. <br />
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In our municipality, we have special material recovery facilities at the landfill site that have expert workers and automated sorting technologies to recover all recyclables. I always tell visitors to the zero waste park that when there's a question as to whether something is recyclable or not, put it in the recycle bin because the experts and machines have the last look.<br />
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Please sort responsibly.richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-15578925352452262502012-07-13T08:32:00.000-07:002012-07-13T08:32:07.812-07:00ZerO Waste and golf were simply made for each otherI was at an Eco-Rotary meeting in Morro Bay last night where the main topic of discussion was planning another zero waste park at Morro Bay Golf Course. Morro Bay Eco-Rotary is a club that has really advanced the zero waste message. In the past year they have managed the waste at every significant local event, from harbor festival to Car Show. In this second year they are already committed for every weekend to do the zero waste thing at events. Because of their efforts in the past year, most regional public gatherings are making the effort to seperate and manage their waste streams.<br />
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Eco-Rotarians sort event wastes into 4 catagories: recycle, compost, liquid, and trash (although in an attempt to finish the event with an empty trash container, they also advise event planners about percycle strategies to prevent trash wastes before they occur) They're composting the event food and organic wastes in their own compost operation, but they really don't have the room or proper equipment to do the job effeciently since theier waste management services have become so popular.<br />
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I was happy to learn that MB Eco-Rotary was planning on moving their community zero waste services headquarters to our second zero waste golf course compost facility to be located at Morro Bay Golf Course, which is another San Luis Obispo County managed course, under the direction of superintendent Josh Heptig. Eco-Rotary has also prototyped a residential compost club where area residents can bring their weekly food scraps to contribute in the diversion of organics to the land fill. The new MBGC zero waste facility will attract environmentally sensitive groups and individuals to the course. It will become a community center for composting and zero waste demonstrations and information. What a wonderful way to bring the public to the golf course. What a great way to offer additional public services from an existing facility.<br />
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One of the best aspects of combining golf courses and zero waste is the fact that golf courses can benefit so greatly from the compost products that are generated. It's a natural balance....a golf course can easily absorb more compost than they can produce from their own organic waste stream and the public need access to a regional facility for composting, recycling and environmental education. No Better place than the golf course for the land and the people to come together to protect the local and global environment.<br />
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richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-2620208825580569552012-07-09T08:56:00.001-07:002012-07-09T08:56:36.105-07:00What good are international golf course environmental certifications?I stayed 4 days at an Audubon Certified Palm Springs golf resort. The place had swans, black and white, real pink flamingos and a gaggle of Canada geese swimming and posing in all the artistically produced water hazards. When we got to the 8th hole one day, the course maintenance guys were trying to herd or harrass a large group of birds by dive bombing them with remote control airplanes and a flying boat device. How lovely. How environmentally sensitive.<br />
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Because of my experience with zero waste golf, I look around to see how public facilities manage their waste stream. One thing I see in most golf courses is a lack of recycle containers on the course or around the clubhouse or resort. That was the case where I stayed in Palm Springs. While there may have been some seperating going on behind the scenes, there was no opportunity for guests and players to contribute to the effort. The weather every day we were there was over 105 degrees F so everybody in then resort was continually hydrating so we were all producing a lot of drink containers. No place but the trash can to place the empties.<br />
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The question I have is, " What good are international golf course environmental certifications such as Audubon or GEO if the course management doesn't make an obvious attempt to live up to the reciprocal responsibilities that come with the certification?". The answer I have is, "These international certifying organizations don't seem to care what is going on at the local level as long as the course continues to pay the money to renew the certificate every few years. <br />
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I'm an advocate for golf courses promoting and demonstrating local solutions for global problems. As an example, if we want to reduce greenhouse gasses in the global atmosphere, we need to reduce the potentials for harmful gasses to be released into the atmosphere. That's something that has to be done on a local, individual level. No employee from the international certifying organization is going to fly out to sort recyclables out of the dumpster because there was no recycle container for customers to place their empties.<br />
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I doubt that international environmental certification help market a course's reputation for environmental sensitivity. I suspect that most golfers don't even think about a courses environmental practices. Every golfer I talked to during the four days I spent in Palm Springs was talking about going on line to shop for the best daily greens fee deals. I'm sure I'd have a lot more readers if I wrote a blog about where to get the cheapest golf deals.<br />
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<br />richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-42977598062950161562012-07-04T09:04:00.002-07:002012-07-04T09:04:30.763-07:00The best golf superintendent in the worldI work with the best golf superintendent in the world. Well, you may ask...what makes this county golf boss the best golf superintendent in the world?<br />
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Even though Josh Heptig is responsible for the course conditions on three municipal courses in different microclimate zones, he doesn't sweat it because, coincidentally, we also have the best greenskeepers in the world maintaining the courses in pristine conditions year round.<br />
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But seriously, what makes these guys the best at what they do? They are on the cutting edge of the greatest change to the environmental profile of the golf industry in the history of the game. Don't make me bore you with a long list of details, but it's clear to us already that our zero waste golf park project is gaining real traction with the new breed of environmentally aware golf professionals worldwide. Zero waste just fits golf course operations like a glove...and because of the leadership of Heptig and greens crew at Dairy Creek, it's suddenly the obvious answer to local actions that benefit the environment and the bottom line.<br />
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Josh often tells people that the greatest surprise revealed as a result of establishing the zero waste park at Dairy Creek is how the zero waste initiative has attracted diverse partners within the community to come together on golf course grounds to promote environmental education and awareness in the community at large. What a great way to reach out to the community's non golfers who may just need a nudge to become our future golfers and paying customers.<br />
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These guys don't have a fat budget or a lot of employees with which to operate San Luis Obispo county golf courses. At Dairy Creek, only 5 guys do it all, seven days a week. They don't have membership money like private clubs do, or an opportunity for freewheeling entrepreneurial risk taking. It's the tightest budget conditions you can imagine, and yet these guys are changing the face of modern golf course management on a shoestring. If these guys can afford to operate a zero waste operation on their government budget, then it's obvious that every other golf course in the world can't afford not to. <br />
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Josh Heptig is the best golf superintendent in the world because he has inspired his staff and community associates to pioneer the new global standard for golf environmentalism. <br />
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If your golf superintendent can compete for "best superintendent in the world" honors, speak now or forever hold your peace.<br />
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<br />richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-47448418723140944022012-07-03T07:23:00.002-07:002012-07-03T07:23:47.336-07:00Zero Waste Webinar coming soonWe have decided it's time to produce our first zero waste webinar. We'll explain our process in detail for those of you who may be interested.<br />
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We'll make some instructional videos regarding the vessel composting, worm farming, and compost tea brewing. We'll also show how we transport the food wastes from kitchen to composter.<br />
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It's so simple it's a joke. But zero waste is no joke, really... Most important from my perspective is the food and green waste composting. We diverted and composted approximately one ton of food and green wastes per month last year. That means that we prevented approximately 6000 cubic meters of CO2 from being released into the atmosphere each month. <br />
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That's right, one metric ton of food waste, when landfilled, produces 300 cubic meters of methane gas which is 20 times more harmful to the atmosphere than is CO2. Do the math...300X20=6000.<br />
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If we divert one ton of food waste per month from our small food concession, think about how much food and green waste you are producing at your course, restaurant or home. Save our environment and start composting!richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-83850661819395007212012-07-01T07:21:00.001-07:002012-07-01T07:21:55.427-07:00So this is environmental leadership?We hear so much lip service about "sustainability, ecological awareness and environmental protection", but where is the real leadership? Leadership is not a sport of restating the obvious while the problems remain unchanged. No, leadership is about inspiring change.<br />
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One thing about the Zero Waste Park at Dairy Creek Golf Course is that it is inspiring real change in our county. The greatest change that we see is a growth in the awareness of zero waste as a principle for action in our everyday lives. The term "Zero Waste" trumps all other environmental catch phrases. Every environmental protection action possible falls under the umbrella of zero waste.<br />
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In the past 2 years since we began promoting zero waste in our county, there have been several local groups that have formed specifically to help raise zero waste awareness. A group of Rotarians in Morro Bay have pioneered an Eco-Rotary group whose members volunteer to process the trash at almost every large festival or event. They set up and host waste sorting stations around the events and then the hosts discuss zero waste strategies with the event goers as they present their party wastes for sorting. As a result of Eco-Rotarian actions, more and more local event planners are prioritizing zero waste as a signature part of their environmental stance.<br />
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The zero waste park is located at a county municipal golf facility, which many of you know. One thing that the county has realized through their partnership in the project is the value of doubling up on the utility of facilities that are already in place. We don't need a new piece of land upon which to provide services to our constituents. We can use a place we already own and maintain. Along this line, our golf superintendent Josh Heptig, has offered what is basically free land at Dairy Creek upon which to construct a permanent facility for junior golf and environmental awareness at Dairy Creek. The First Tee and Autobon International as well as our local integrated waste management authority are already making commitments to participate.<br />
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I could go on, but you get the picture. <br />
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This is environmental leadership.richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-69249648868582438862012-02-07T08:00:00.000-08:002012-02-07T08:00:06.583-08:00Zero Waste partners are coming togetherDairy Creek's zero waste park is running smoothly. We compost all the restaurant food wastes, grass clippings, cardboard and wood chips on a daily basis. We're brewing compost tea every week and testing the tea for optimal microbial population with Cal Poly University and the Soil Food Web Institute and with funding from USGA. We're teaming up with First Tee and our county waste management authority to apply for some grants to build a permanent demonstration facility to introduce school students to zero waste strategies for school and home. Oh, and while they're on site, we'll put clubs in their hands and give them some basic golf instruction.<br />
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See, we think we can grow the game of golf and payable rounds when we introduce children to the fun of the game. We believe the kids will come back to the course and bring a parent with them. We also believe that the best way to change the way we handle trash and wastes is to educate the next generation.<br />
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All in all, it's the local partnerships as well as support from the golf industry that really get our engines running. When so many good people and organizations are this eager to join the effort, that's got to be a good sign for the future of zero waste golf...don't you agree?richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-32989497946302726982011-12-17T08:12:00.000-08:002011-12-17T08:19:00.295-08:00Looking back on the first year of zero waste golf<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8;">This is the year zero waste golf was born. It started out as idea being tossed around by a few buddies. Nurtured by optimists, luckily presented to an interested and capable decision maker, joined by enthusiastic associates, adopted by government agencies and opened to the public at Dairy Creek Golf Course in San Luis Obispo California.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8;">This is a year to remember. As zero waste becomes the norm at golf courses worldwide in the next few years, remember this blogspot as the beginning of a global movement using golf courses as community environmental and educational assets. It's just not cool to trash the environment any more, and businesses that promote zero waste next year are going to be the next generation of environmental leaders.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8;">Zero waste is a concept reserved for leaders. Anyone promoting zero waste in their community IS a leader, and then those who are adopt zero waste become the next generation of leaders, and so on. The funny thing about zero waste is that it's hard to define in it's entirety. Zero waste is huge. Zero waste is almost too big to be defined, but yet, it is applicable to most every action and transaction. Heck, zero waste is applicable to future actions. As example, BEFORE you buy products, if you're a zero waster, you'll think about the impact of the product or its packaging will eventually impact the waste stream...precycling.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8;">Once we start defining zero waste for ourselves, we find ourselves sharing the definition with others. Next thing you know they are repeating their versions of the zero waste concept to their friends and coworkers...and then the idea goes viral on social media...and then the world is changed forever. In future years, when all golf courses adopt zero waste protocols as every day best management practices, I will always remember that 2011 was the first year of zero waste golf.</span>richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-9989808192964805232011-12-11T08:15:00.000-08:002011-12-11T08:15:53.111-08:00When I die put my ashes inside one of those exploding golf ballsI love Dairy Creek Golf Course / Zero Waste Park. It's unbelievably beautiful, nestled among the raptor flown grasslands, ocean breezes and ancient volcanos. I told my golf partner that when I die I want my ashes spread on the course. But I was thinking that I could multitask by playing a prank if my ashes were stuffed into an exploding golf ball. Maybe my remains could be stuffed down the shaft of my buddy's driver, then I could hack and shank my way into the afterlife.<br />
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But seriously, when I die I plan to leave some of my assets to support Dairy Creek and the important environmental leadership that is taking place there. I imagine that there are a lot of golfers that could help save the planet for their grandchildren by supporting environmental improvements at their local golf course. Whatever we care about, whether it's golf, football, fishing...whatever, think about giving support to those in that sport or industry that are using their facility or visibility to promote environmental best management practices.<br />
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That money isn't going to do you any good when you're dead and gone, so why not not call the lawyer and change your will today, before you forget about it. For that matter, you probably have too much money even now, so why not make a charitable donation to your course or environmental non-profit before years end. Your donation could start a whole environmental movement within your course and community.richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-41648886860459066682011-12-10T08:43:00.000-08:002011-12-10T08:43:32.825-08:00Leadership is always risky for cowards...but who's scared now?Surfers have a mantra..."No Fear", because when you look down the face of a huge ocean wave, you either chicken out or drop in for fun. You can't have the surfing experience if you don't overcome the fear of being crushed by tons of water if you screw up.<br />
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Overcoming the fear of failure is the secret to success, and that's the same whether you're dropping in on a wave or taking a leadership position in the highly controlled and conservative golf industry. Try to change golf's direction in almost any area and you risk being crushed by the weight of tradition and global corporations that "control" golf, golf apparel, golf equipment, golf ideas ...you get the idea. Anybody with any brains at all would walk away from the challenge of changing golf's environmental protocols.<br />
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Dude, surfers aren't brain surgeons when they drop in on 20 footers, but they are very brave. It's the same with zero wasters at the golf course. We may not be geniuses, but we're not afraid to challenge the industry to make fundamental changes that all other modern industries are being forced to make to save potable water, to reduce the use of poisons, and to reduce landfilled waste. In fact, we're enboldened by the positive response from our community, from our local integrated waste management authorities, county supervisors and other interested environmental groups, our club members and the public at large.. <br />
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For me, this golf environmental leadership thing is all new, and in the beginning it seemed like the golf industry was a looming wave waiting to crush us under it's enormous weight...but you know, once we just threw fear aside and just dropped in on zero waste golf , we found ourselves on one of the most exciting, thrilling and fun rides ever.richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-32475112181667040252011-11-25T08:13:00.000-08:002011-11-25T09:03:51.226-08:00Occupy GolfGet ready for golf courses to start doing double duty. It's no longer good enough to keep a beautiful course for the benefit of wealthy golfers only. If golf superintendents don't find ways to show that they care about the needs of their surrounding community, they may find disgruntled "occupiers" camping out on their practice greens.<br />
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We're doing the zero waste golf demo park thing, and we suggest that you do too. But there are a lot of ways to connect to the community. Use your imagination. <br />
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Excess and need are crucial complements in our wholistic universe. What does your community need? What do you have to offer? Think up a project and apply for some local grants or petition your local service group for some volunteer help to accomplish a community project. The holiday season is a great time to reach out. How about gift cards for greens fees in which a portion (or all) of the money goes to local charities? <br />
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Here's an idea...How about promoting an event at your course where members clean out their garage of old unused golf clubs and stuff. Gather them all up at the clubhouse, and then one special day, give them all away to young people under the age of 18, who would like to try golf, but don't have the bucks. This would be a wonderful zero waste project. The old clubs will be reused, young potential golfers will pay to play with their new clubs, and your course makes a connection with the community. <br />
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At Dairy Creek, we make compost tea from our food wastes to use on the course in lieu of chemical fertilizers. But we can make way more than we can use, and it doesn't cost anything but the power to run the bubbler. We're going to start giving it away on Saturdays to promote zero waste and to benefit the environment, but also as a way we can connect with our community and non-golfers. We'll do anything to avoid occupiers from pitching their tents on the driving range.richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-17000950778378881542011-11-24T10:25:00.000-08:002011-11-24T10:25:13.708-08:00Zero Waste Golf Course as global community centerDairy Creek Golf Course is rapidly becoming a community center for environmental recreation and education. We are experiencing a rush of interest from various entities within our county and from afar via internet. ( to see pics of our ribbon cutting ceremony visit <a href="http://slocountygolfcourses.blogspot.com/">http://slocountygolfcourses.blogspot.com/</a> )We have been approached by numerous educators who want to use the zero waste park for student and public visitation. California Conservation Corps (CCC) has asked to train and provide docents from their corpsmembers. Morro Bay Eco-Rotary club is really ramping up their zero waste event service program in which they spread the word about zero waste and the zero waste park at Dairy Creek by attending local events with their mobile zero waste stations and assisting event goers in proper sorting techniques. Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant's environmental staff visited our park and concluded that they will start composting the food wastes from their mess operations. A local catering company that catered over local 700 events last year is beginning to incorporate zero waste sorting techniques into their customer service protocols.<br />
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We're so inundated with questions and requests to participate in the zero waste park's success, that we need to quickly develop a better system for dispensing information and to schedule / organize the opportunities for community involvement and participation. We're thinking about creating a "Zero Waste Task Force" with members from all the various organizations that have interest or assets to offer in furthering zero waste on the Central Coast and afield. We also need to better our web site, <a href="http://www.zerowasteconcepts.com/">http://www.zerowasteconcepts.com/</a> , which is in development but slow because of a lack of cash.<br />
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What we really need to do is further develop our fund raising and grant writing protocols because even though we have built the park on donations and good will, to get to the next level, we need cash. We're hoping that the zero waste task force will help our visibility and outreach.<br />
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Zero waste golf is the new paradyme of using a golf course as environmental community center. There is no better way to attract non golfers to the course, with the goal of producing more paying rounds, while rehabilitating golf's dismal environmental reputation and protecting the environment in a sustainable and reproducible fashion. From our perspective so far, zero waste golf is a real win-win-win ....win. Perhaps you will join or help us further zero waste golf locally or globally by joining a virtual "zero waste golf task force" in which we can share strategies, training and enthusiasm for other golf courses to experience the great results that we are enjoying here.richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-68216325557186345652011-11-23T08:15:00.000-08:002011-11-23T08:15:36.536-08:00Zero Waste Park Grand Opening Ceremony Rocks!On November 10, 2001 San Luis Obispo County Parks hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the completion of our Zero Waste Park at Dairy Creek Golf Course. Of course, it's not actually finished, rather just getting started. We have the composting, vermiculture and compost tea demonstrations finished and working. We're working on a snazzy recycling demonstration that emphasizes the need for responsible sorting. If each individual on the course or at home would just take a little more care to sort their waste products, it would make a world of difference at the landfill or recycle facility.<br />
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At Dairy Creek, we've gotten rid of all the trash cans but one. Instead, we've installed more recycle and compost containers. Above the containers, we've posted attractive signs listing items commonly found on site and into which container they are to be placed. Our golfers figured it out immediately! The thing about golf courses is that, more than most other venues, golf course waste streams are relatively easy to predict. We still have some work to do...as example, we haven't been able to get the food and beverage concessionaire to get rid of the plastic coated coca cola cups that they get for free from the beverage supplier. Seems that recyclable cups are much more costly. Maybe we can raise some funds to help offset the cost of making the change. We're also struggling with those little coffee creamer cups and catsup blister packs. Although they're plastic, they're so small that they don't get sorted very well in the mechanized materials recovery facility (recycle sorting facility).<br />
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All-in-all, the food and beverage folks are really doing a great job of supporting our zero waste initiative. They're sorting out approximately 120 lbs of food waste for composting every day. They have really cleaned up their trash and recycle dumpsters. Used to be that their trash dumpster was overflowing with food waste and recycle materials. Now, the trash dumpster is almost empty, while the recycle is chock full. This is what zero waste is all about....reduce trash going to landfill, recycle or reuse almost everything. In order to do this, it may be necessary to precycle. Precycling is the process of changing buying strategies to avoid packaging that doesn't recycle. It's important to get rid of styrofoam to-go containers, those plastic coated coke cups (they seem to be wax coated paper, but they're not, and they don't recycle). And cardboard...take a little time to keep fiber products out of the trash.<br />
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Our next goal is to start a saturday morning zero waste / freecycle / organic farmers market / event on the back forty of the clubhouse parking lot. The goal is to further the zero waste awareness, while at the same time attracting non-golfers to the course. We want non-golfers to pick up a putter while they're visiting the course. The practice putting green is right next to the parking lot, so we expect that some of our non golfer visitors may be swayed towards the fun of golf. That's another important part of our zero waste park strategy...we don't want to waste any opportunities to attract more new customers to the golf course.<br />
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All in all, zero waste golf is a big hit. We have been pleasantly surprised as to the breadth of support we have recieved from the global golf industry, from local politicians, non profit groups and the general public. It's fantastic. If you google "zero waste golf" you'll be amazed at all the press we've attracted globally. One of the latest articles of note appeared in the USGA green section. Look for it.<br />
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If you're a golf superintendent, or a policy maker in your area, or even an interested individual, you should consider promoting zero waste golf at your golf courses. You won't be sorry.richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-51781295755877901502011-09-11T08:59:00.000-07:002011-09-11T08:59:40.218-07:00Worms on wheelsYesterday I took 40 gallons of zero waste golf worms in 5 plastic bins to a fundraiser for "the friends of the elephant seals". This group administers the elephant seal rookery along the coast highway north of Hearst Castle. The event was "Zero Waste" as nothing went to the landfill. The worms were there to consume all the food scraps, which they did with smiles on their faces. <br />
This kind of outreach is how we can spread the word about how Dairy Creek Golf Course is working to improve the local and global environment through education, outreach and through zero waste practices. We're very pleased to announce that many of the attendees of the fundraiser were already aware of Dairy Creek's emerging zero waste park.<br />
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Even small acts are crucial complements to the big picture in our wholistic universe.richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-92166798675234875672011-09-09T22:20:00.000-07:002011-09-09T22:20:30.402-07:00Now that's more like itWe had a meeting with all the department heads at Dairy Creek this week...topic? getting everybody to participate more fully on our zero waste initiative. Mostly, we just wanted to get the kitchen staff to ramp up seperating food wastes for composting. Mission accomplished...so far everyday since, about 25 lbs of excellent scraps.<br />
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I need to let them know that the worms would enjoy the coffee grounds and egg shells as well.<br />
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I'm just glad to see things coming together.richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-76968808113314546612011-09-05T09:00:00.000-07:002011-09-05T09:00:54.421-07:00ZerO Waste Golf is a team sportOur zero waste demonstration park at Dairy Creek GC is really coming along. The vessel composters are both cooking, the worms are reproducing robustly, and the viewing platform around the compost tea brewer is almost completed. I was thinking about cutting some viewing windows in the composters so visitors can see what a compost pile looks like inside.<br />
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Right now, the biggest problem we have is getting the kitchen staff to be more consistant diverting kitchen scraps from the garbage so that we can compost them. Some days they do, and others they don't. We actually NEED the food waste because it really helps to accelerate the composting. <br />
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The composters generally hover around 140 degrees when we're composting grass clippings and wood chips. When we add food wastes to the mix, the temp jumps to 160 overnight and then stays there for a day or so. Just like any other living organisms, the microbes in the compost like something to eat and really reproduce quickly when the food wastes are added.<br />
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The worms need the food wastes to optimize their growth and health as well. I have several worm bin operations stashed around the county, and they each have their own food source. Although worms can be "trained" to eat almost anything, there is a big difference between those that eat mostly lettuce and those who eat a more diverse diet of vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, shredded paper or compost. The worms that eat lettuce reproduce more slowly and are generally smaller than those that eat "real food".<br />
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Zero Waste Golf is a new concept around here. Although most folks get the idea immediately, not that many are accustomed to taking action to do anything about it. Golfers are particularly difficult to train. They're only thinking "pure swing thoughts" and trying to leave the real world behind when they're on the course. That's where consistant actions, interesting demonstrations and educational outreach come into play. It's going to take time to change the world, and we're good with that. <br />
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But ZerO Waste is a team sport. The more of us that work together, the closer to zero waste we will get. Hopefully, the kitchen staff will get the message.richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-54099438840166178472011-08-31T08:42:00.000-07:002011-08-31T08:42:11.568-07:00ZerO Waste Golf is the message, and now it's our new nameI recently changed the name of this blog to "ZerO Waste Golf. The name change makes perfect sense...the posts that get the most readership all have zero waste in the headline.richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3856786333915281700.post-80154582150784692902011-08-17T09:04:00.000-07:002011-08-18T08:00:28.208-07:00Golf Course Food Wastes, An Excellent Opportunity for Environmental LeadershipThe increasing amount of carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere is generally blamed for global climate change. Most often, car emissions are held up as the example polluter of CO2. But after a brief research session, I found some interesting statistics that I'd like to share with you.<br />
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<strong>Autos</strong>: An average automobile releases 20 pounds of CO2 per gallon. Some research claims that the average car produces 6 tons of CO2 per year.<br />
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<strong>Airplanes</strong>: A commercial airliner flying non stop from Boston to Wichita releases approximately 1400 pounds of CO2. It's 1645 miles from Boston to Wichita, so that's just a little less than 1 pound of CO2per mile<br />
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<strong>Cows</strong>: An adult cow releases on average between 100 kg of methane per year. That equates to 2000 kg of CO2 per year, or 2 tons of CO2. <br />
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<div class="vsc" cved="0CDIQkAowAg" pved="0CDAQkgowAg" rawurl="http://timeforchange.org/are-cows-cause-of-global-warming-meat-methane-CO2" sig="3Bk"><div class="vspi"></div></div><strong>Coal Fired Power Plant</strong>: One ton of coal burned in the average power plant releases approximately 2.5 tons of CO2.<br />
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<strong>Landfilled Food Wastes</strong>: One ton of landfilled food wastes releases the equivalent of <em><u>6000 tons</u></em> of CO2<br />
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<strong><em>WHAT? Yes it's true</em></strong><strong><em>... Pound for pound, landfilled food wastes are the worst source for greenhouse gases of all.</em></strong><br />
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Studies by Arizona State University have shown that one dry ton of food wastes that decay anaerobically in landfill releases approximately 300 cubic meters of methane gas into the atmosphere. Methane gas is recognized by USEPA as being 20 times more harmful to the atmosphere than CO2. 300 cubic meters of methane multiplied by 20 = 6000 cubic meters of CO2.<br />
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Diverting food waste from landfill must be elevated to the highest priority if the harmful effects of global warming are to be slowed.<br />
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Not everybody drives a car or flies an airplane. Coal power plants? who even knows where they are? But everybody (apologies to those who lack enough food to be included) eats everyday and throws their wasted food or scraps into the trash can. That is why Green Golfer Foundation feels so strongly that golf courses should spread the word and lead by example by composting food wastes. Simply put, landfilled food wastes are the major source of greenhouse pollutants, period.<br />
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Food waste composting is regulated in most states, so there are, most likely, some regulations to learn and to follow, usually based upon the amount of wastes being composted, where the wastes come from and where they're going to be used. At Dairy Creek GC, we use vessel composters that are certified for food waste composting, and we also use worm bins to digest food wastes into vermicompost.<br />
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A few communities have a municipal composting operation that accepts food wastes, so it is possible to divert food wastes from the landfill in that manner. Our community does not have such a facility, so we do our own composting. We want the compost, and the vermicompost, anyway, because we use it to make compost tea with which we reduce our fertilizer and pesticide use and costs.<br />
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<strong>Oh, by the way, in case you were counting on golf course trees to absorb all the CO2 produced on site</strong>...A single adult tree absorbs approximately 48 pounds of CO2 per year. Now, calculate your food waste and then figure out how many trees you need to plant in the rough.<br />
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richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17206811515277626489noreply@blogger.com0