Professional Documents
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Driving down Avila Beach Drive towards the gorgeous coastline of the California central
coast a well watered vibrant green golf course can be seen on the right side of the road. Yet the
vegetation surrounding the course is a muted light brown; the sign of thirsty plants. The
seemingly perfect golf course is known as Avila Beach Golf Resort. The resort is advertised to
have an unmatchable grand golfing experience to offer to its guests. Unfortunately, this course
may harm the surrounding environment so much that it is not worth all the praise.
According to the Avila Regional Recycled Water Study, Avila Beach Golf Resort needs
approximately 207 acre feet of water per year. One acre foot of water is a unit used in reference
to water usage and is the amount of water needed to cover one acre of land that is one foot deep.
All that water generally adds up to 326,000 gallons which is about the amount of water that two
four person family households use in a year. With that in mind, it can be inferred that the Avila
Beach Golf Resort uses the same amount of water as over 1,500 people. The resort gets its water
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from the San Miguelito Mutual Water Company (SMMWC) yet even though the SMMWC
supplies a variety of users, both commercial and residential, the Avila Beach Golf Resort uses
over 40% of the available water the SMMWC has to offer(Avila Regional Recycled Water
Study).
People aren’t the only thing that the golf course is taking water away from though. The
golf course sits along an estuary that filters into San Luis Obispo Bay and is surrounded by
greenery. Golf courses, according to Irene Petrosilloin her article “Can a Golf Course Support
Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services? The Landscape Context Matter”,are known to,
“contaminate surface and groundwater due to the chemical inputs employed to maintain the
“‘green”’ coverage”and.tT
he “green coverage” golfcourses are trying to maintain is the
consistent bright green fresh grass for golfing which needs a lot of fertilizer and pesticides to
sustain. The location of Avila Beach Golf Resort causesits fertilizers to easily spread into water
systems. The most common fertilizers used by golf courses contain nitrogen, phosphorus, and
potassium. These macronutrients are commonly used in all fields of plant growth such as
agriculture and gardening because they are a great recipe to help plants grow big quickly and
stay healthy. Yet if they leach into a body of water such as the estuary or San Luis Obispo
filthy, cloudy, and filled with algae. Essentially that is what occurs with eutrophication.
ig 1: A map of the golf course and local area. The estuary can
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be seen in light gray above the town and below Heron Crest.
(Avila Regional Recycled Water Study)
As wellAlso, “Dduring the construction of a golf coursein an area without a strong
tendency to aridity or wetness, [bulk density] was significantly higher… [penetration resistance]
was significantly higher… [and] pore size distribution decreased significantly”(Petrosillo). These
measurements may be confusing yet they all lead to unhealthy soil. An increase in bulk density
causes it to be harder for water to flow into the soil and for important microorganisms to thrive.
An increase in penetration resistance makes it harder for roots to penetrate and grow in the soil.
A decrease in pore size means the soil is much more compact also causing similar consequences
Lawnmowers also create a major disturbance to the local environment. Lawnmowers can
cause as much pollution as a car driven for 100 miles if used for one hour. Alongside air
pollution, lawnmowers create a lot of noise pollution creating a noise as loud as a jackhammer.
Jessica Boehland explains, “Lawnmowers regularly emit a 90-decibel din. According to the
hazardous”.In a rural place such as Avila Beach,this has many negative effects on the local
wildlifeand human population. The golf course hasa lot oflandlandit has to mow as well with
The negative effects of the Avila Beach Golf Resort on the environment continue to
ripple out affecting more than just the immediate surrounding area. Water systems are thoroughly
connected and when one part of the system is hurt the whole system is affected. Having a golf
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course right next to an estuary and ocean is especially detrimental. A golf course is a highly
controlled field of grass that is dumped on with fertilizer and pesticides. These chemicals can
With some simple changes, the Avila Beach Golf Course can be much less destructive to
the area around it. Avila Beach Golf Course uses kikuyu and bentgrass grasses for their greens.
Both of those grasses require extensive watering and care. An alternative that could work well is
called Zoysia Grass. Zoysia Grass is very drought resistant and requires little maintenance. By
using Zoysia Grass, Avila Beach Golf Resort could reduce its water usage while still keeping the
pretty greens they are trying to have. SMMWC is on track to start reusing wastewater for
irrigation at the course yet has not confirmed usage. The reusage of wastewater would be a great
step in the right direction. Reusing wastewater means taking water that has been classified as
“waste” or already used and depending on how dirty the water is treating it slightly to then use it
as irrigation. It is not water fit to drink as a human but would still be great for plants. Another
change that could occur would be converting from pesticides to integrated pest management
known as IPM. IPM is a sustainable way to deal with possible pests because it works with the
natural environment rather than bringing in foreign chemicals. Keeping pests in check with IPM
means having a large knowledge of all the organisms that live in that environment. Then with
that knowledge, one can naturally control those pests by doing things such as bringing in other
organisms that could keep the populations in check or practicing prevention to stop pests from
even occurring in the first place. Some examples of this are helping hawk populations thrive by
dealing with an excess amount of mice or planting pest resistant plants and crops. As well there
are some solutions for the golf course that could apply to many places other than the course. The
resort is already on the path towards solar panels which would help in reducing non sustainable
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energy usage. The resort should also invest in electric lawnmowers. Electric lawnmowers
produce no air pollution and also are much quieter than classic gas fueled lawnmowers.
If Avila Beach Golf Resort can create a more sustainable resort it could even benefit the
environment. Grass can help filter and clean water as it travels through the dirt and into
groundwater. The course can help draw people outside and keep them active while also being in
a beautiful area. Therefore building a love for nature and pushing people to further care for the
world around them. The course can also be a refuge for migrant birds as predators are less likely
to prowl the course in fear of humans. There are many ways to get outside in San Luis Obispo
County and the course is another way to do so yet it needs to work on its impact on the
Golfing can be a great activity yet golf courses must be made to not destroy the
environment so they can benefit people and not negatively affect a plethora of other organisms.
Avila Beach Golf Resort is geologically placed in a location where it can have a very great effect
on the natural world around it. Golf courses in more urban situations have less of a worry in
affecting water systems yet Avila Beach Golf Resort must be mindful in its effects on the grand
ocean right next to it. If their fertilizers leach into the nearby estuary it can cause massive algae
blooms that kill countless organisms and can destroy entire water communities. The resort can
also work on its presence in the sense of converting to electric lawnmowers and using better
grasses that use less water. The Avila Beach Golf Resort could be a wonderful place for its guests
and the world surrounding it but first, it must make some changes to be more friendly to the
environment.