Where does the water come from?

[Brian_Gracely]

Newbie question....

I've been reading Doak's "Anatomy of a Golf Course" recently and had a question about the section on water sources.  It talks about typical amounts of water needed for a course (per hour, per year, etc.).  It says that wells often can't handle that much water removal without drying up, so water storage "basins" often need to be built.  He also mentioned that it's usually not a great idea to become dependent on municipality water because it can be rationed in times of drought.

Looking at a bunch of Scott B's AOTDs, I see a number of courses that don't seem to have any visible water sources.  So my question is, where is the water coming from?  Do most courses build wells?  And what about a course like Sand Hills, which is essentially in the middle of nowhere.

Thanks,
Newbie

[Kyle Harris]

A lot of municipalities will allow golf course to use their gray water sources (treated water).

During droughts here, our local muni stays somewhat green thanks to this policy.

[Scott_Burroughs]

I can't seem to remember for sure, but I think Sand Hills has a (or some) massively deep wells and there may be an aquifer as well, but it wouldn't surprise me if I'm wrong.

I'm guessing most older courses (at least in the east) have wells.  Luckily, in the eastern half of the U.S., rainfall is pretty regular enough to not have to worry about using them constantly and running dry.  A few years ago, the northeast was in a serious drought, courses started getting pretty dry (I understand it was fun to play!), but remnants from a few hurricanes took care of the problem.

[A_Clay_Man]

The ogalalla aquifer comprises most of the middle of the country.
http://earth.rice.edu/mtpe/hydro/hydrosphere/hot/freshwater/FreshWater_OCP06.html

Palm Springs has access to a large one too. Maybe the same one?

[Tony_Chapman]

Mr. Newbie - The Sand Hills and soon to be Dismal River Club and Prairie Club sit on the second largest aquifer in the world: The Ogallala Aquifer.

[Brian_Gracely]

In the Sandhills, is the owner of the land permitted access to the aquifer if a well is built?  Or would they still need to get gov't permission?  

[Jeff_Brauer]

Brian,

I don't know about Sand Hills. EVery state has different water rights laws.  I think they would have the right in Nebraska to capture any water on their property (ie in farm tanks, at least pre-golf course) and in wells.  BTW, I don't think Sand Hills wells are all the deep. From memory, I think they sunk some shallower wells that produce only a few hundred gallons a minute, but under their regimen, thats all they need.

In Texas right now, we have the water capture rule for both surface and subsurface water, but they are discussing making all water the property of the state to dole out.

To answer your first question, water usually comes from (in order) wells, stream capture, then city water. This depends on the area of the country.  In Kansas, they had no groundwater, for example.  They needed to use city water or effluent.  Here in Texas, we can get deep wells that produce 600-1200GPM. Water quality is getting to be an issue here - salt content is very high.  In other areas, metals can affect usability of the water.

Effluent is used surprisingly litte right now, mostly because the cost of building the lines from the plants to where they are needed.  It will become an increasing source for irrigation of all types though some point in the future.

[Tyler Kearns]

Here are the grim statistics regarding the Ogallala aquifer, taken from the book "Blue Gold".

The Ogallala aquifer covers approximately 500,000 sq. km. (190,000 sq. miles) and contained 4 trillion tons of water, and stretches from the Texas panhandle to South Dakota. Roughly, 200,000 wells draw water from it, irrigating 20% of the total irrigated land in the US. The water is being removed at the rate of 50 million litres (13 million US gallons) per minute, exceeding the natural rate of recharge by 14 times. Yikes! Since 1991, the water table has dropped 1 meter (3ft.) per year.

TK

[Jason Hines]

Coming from a long line of irrigators, parts of the aquifer are shrinking while others are not.  Drought has a lot to do with the recharge as well.  Right now water restrictions are being put in place by the individual states.  What happens if and when the water runs out?  They stop, no one dies, it recharges and your food prices go up.  The water used for Wild Horse, SH etc. is miniscule.  Don't worry, the govt will regulate.

Jason

[Steve Lang]

 

best to check out the resources from the USGS, for instance in regard to ground waters, the

GROUND WATER ATLAS of the UNITED STATES at

http://capp.water.usgs.gov/gwa/gwa.html

[peter_p]

Palm Springs is atop the Salton Trough aquifer, a terminal sink basin. About 1200 sq mi., but the water level is sinking through overuse.

[Joel_Stewart]

Effluent is used surprisingly litte right now, mostly because the cost of building the lines from the plants to where they are needed.  It will become an increasing source for irrigation of all types though some point in the future.

Jeff:
You are correct here.  San Francisco Golf Club, Olympic and Lake Merced are now online with an effluent system which you'll probably here more about as time goes by.  So far its gone very well with no adverse effects, even on the poa greens.

Lake Merced was taking no chances, building a major water system with 2 huge tanks, one for fresh water and one for effluent.  The new computerized system allows the staff to pin point a percentage of each water to certain areas.  The greens always receive fresh water.

[Tom_Doak]

Great map!  As you'll notice, Holyoke Colorado is just on the edge of the Ogallala aquifer, too.

[Patrick_Mucci]

Brian Gracely,

The better question would be, where will the water come from.

Having wells means nothing.

More and more, States and agencies are monitoring water use from every source, and wells are no exception.

It will be the states/agencies that determine useage irrespective of the source.

Retention ponds make great sense, especially in a situation where there may be a delivery problem from outside sources.
Having a reserve that can get a course through a week is a sound idea.

The source usually determines the price.

Joel Stewart,

The quality of effluent water can't be guaranteed.

Any course that considers it's use, especially, its sole use, should build their own filtration system for water entering the property.  Those that don't can have perpetual headaches if not disasters.

Restrictions on water might have some benefit.

Eliminating shrub and flower gardens on golf courses
Eliminating the maintainance of areas removed from play.
Altering maintainance practices which alter the conditioning and play of the golf course.

[Jeff_Brauer]

Patrick,

There is wide variety of effluent quality, depending sometimes on the age of the plant, with newer plants producing quite good water.  In Newton, KS, we will be using effluent from their plant which is now being dumped into the stream that runs through the golf course.  Oddly, there are no permitting problems for building a pipe to the irrigation lake, but several in taking the same water out of the stream two miles after it is dumped in.......I can give other examples of "goofy governmental" regulations.  Even the best effluent can be high in metals, but most often those problems can be treated with acid injection or sulphur burners, with the burners being the technically better way to do it under most conditions.

I agree on removing shrubs, etc. Some Texas A and M studies on irrigation show that trees use far more water than turf.  And yet, many cities, like El Paso in the desert of west Texas, have lawn watering restrictions but tree ordiances requiring the planting of so many trees per suburban lot.

Again, the science doesn't always match up with the perception!

The good news for those who favor tree removal is, that A and M study provides one more bullet of ammunition.....

[TEPaul]

Here's an interesting situation, and a virtual catch 22, at least in drought restriction conditions.

In Pa it doesn't matter where you get your irrigation water, from a municipality or from your own property, the irrigation water you put on your course is metered.

And so if a drought condition and irrigation cut back comes the cut back is to some percentage of calculation of the amount of water you used in like three of the last five years.

So what about a course like a Huntingdon Valley where Scott Anderson keeps his agronomy dry as a bone. When the drought restrictions come he has a real potential problem compared to course that massively over-irrigates on a regular basis.

Could this sort of catch 22 create resistance to firmer and faster conditions simply to avoid a real potential problem in drought irrigation restrictions? You bet.

This kinda gets into the old Pentagon mentality of just ask for as much money as possible because if you don't when you really need it you won't be as likely to get it.

For my suggestion for those courses who are worried about this potential catch-22 is if you want to keep your irrigation readings higher for this reason and you also want real firm and fast conditions just dry your agronomy out with minimal irrigation and dump a large amount somewhere other than on the course!  

[Craig Sweet]

"Again, the science doesn't always match up with the perception!"

Jeff, of course trees provide cooling shade and refresh air quality. There are species that require less water and do a good job of storing water for their own use (much like a camel).

I will agree though, trees on a golf course are not a great idea.


 

[Joel_Stewart]

Joel Stewart,

The quality of effluent water can't be guaranteed.

Any course that considers it's use, especially, its sole use, should build their own filtration system for water entering the property.  Those that don't can have perpetual headaches if not disasters.

Pat:
I never said it was guaranteed and I'm sure the city of Daly City wouldn't guarantee it 100%.  So far, Olympic, SFGC and Lake Merced have not had any problems but we have only been online for 4 months.  

[Patrick_Mucci]

TEPaul,

If I were in charge of a golf course, one of the first things I would do is begin a multi year process to reduce water usage.

I think this process leads to faster, firmer conditions, although the first two to three years may cause a little restlessness with the membership.

I recall drought restrictions where only tees and greens could be watered.  Usually, the shorter the grass the greater the need for water.  In the ultimate, do you care about the tees from a playability perspective ?  
The fairways fared fairly well without water
The greens are the feature where one would want to optimize water use.

I'd rather embark upon a program where I thoughtfully and  systematically reduce water usage, and costs, then a program where I'm forced to suddenly eliminate the lifeblood of today's golf course.

Joel Stewart,

100 % guarantee ?

If you can get an 80 % guarantee you'll be lucky, and if effluent is your only source, you're playing Russian Roulette.

Does your contract with the city have minimum standard requirements for water quality ?

Microbes and other contaminents are just the begining of some problems.

If you didn't install on-site filtration systems to further purify the incoming water you're in for some unpleasant surprises if Olympic's experience is like many others.

Give us an update in two years.

[Mike_Trenham]

For my suggestion for those courses who are worried about this potential catch-22 is if you want to keep your irrigation readings higher for this reason and you also want real firm and fast conditions just dry your agronomy out with minimal irrigation and dump a large amount somewhere other than on the course!  

How about a waterfall?

Tom you are right this is a catch 22 problem for those that do not over water.

[Patrick_Mucci]

TEPaul & Mike,

It's not really a problem because the courses that don't overwater survive better in drought situations.

And, water utilization during a drought may not necessarily be based on previous water usage.

In the example I cited, allowing greens and tees to be watered every other day has little or no bearing with respect to previous water usage.

If a situation is serious, like the judge with little discretion, due to mandatory sentencing guidelines, water allocation might become universal rather then site specific.

It would seem wise to plan for prudent future water usage from the perspectives of cost, limitations and conditioning.

Jeff Brauer,

With respect to shrubbed and flowered areas, I asked a superintendent at a well regarded "Golden Age" golf course what impact those areas had on his budget.

He was quite clear that from a daily maintainance and shelf life perspective his costs were much higher then he would have liked and that they diverted attention and siphoned funds from other more important areas.  He indicated that they were very labor intensive, and that because of their locations, they were always in the members eyes, and a constant source of criticism.

Their very existance was a problem.

Yet club after club keeps creating these areas in the name of beautification and adding color to the golf course.

In many cases, incoming green chairman, who know very little about agronomy, maintainance or architecture plant them as their first act in office, looking for compliments for their initial project.   This "window dressing" is a waste of money and takes everyone's eye off the ball.  

[Bill_McBride]

I don't know about this all across the country, but here in the Florida panhandle the use of treated effluent is a double-edged sword.  Tiger Point GC is a 36-hole, privately owned public facility just east of Pensacola.  The management made a deal a few years ago with the local water authority that "allowed" Tiger Point's west 18 to spray a fixed amount of effluent on the course.  But they have to spray it every day, rain or shine.  As a result, the course is typically at best overwatered, at worst a quagmire.

I personally think water and the availability of it will be an overriding issue before this century is over, global warming or no global warming.  I don't know much about this factually, just putting together a lot of different input.  I don't think this bodes well for the golf industry.

[RJ_Daley]

Idealistically, this country should have a more standardised or regionally standardised approach to water issues.  But, there aren't many subjects more politically charged and subject to local powers-that-be, or mired down in more B.S. than water usage and rights issues.  As some of the double standard on usage rules explain above by other posters.

I was interested this last fall to note in my visit there that Holyoke is in deed constructing an out of sight water retention lake.  They may be at the edge of the vast high plains aquifer, but they are prudently planning ahead for more drought (which has been on-going in the region for 4 years now).  Sutton Bay, also has an out of sight water retention lake.  There they sit above a vast water resource at Lake Oahe, but they need to take prudent insurance steps now.  

Water retention ponds or lakes have been built in the last twenty or so years at many facilities that don't necessarily use that water reserve regularly, because drought conditions have put the squeeze on operations in recent years.  Depending on the geographic region, a reserve of water in these ponds needs to be anywhere between a few to several days of the usual irrigation quantity per day.  

I am quite supprised that there isn't a pretty large irrigation and flood water retention basin above Rustic Canyon.  I wonder if Gil or Geoff might know something about that and comment if that were ever a local water management thought.  

BTW, the high plains aquifer and ability to feed irrigators below and along the North Platte region is also interdependent on the resevoir health of Lake MacConeghy which relies on intermoutain accumulation and run off into the resevoir.  Due to long term drought in that region, including in the mountains, the aquifer is down and the resevoir is at alarmingly low long term levels.  A major user of that water is the largest coal fired electric generation in Sutherland, NE.  They are in such desparate straights, that they had to dig 250 high cap wells around the plant, into the aquifer to make up for the low levels coming out of the lake.  Thus, a several year moratorium in the two counties, Lincoln (North Platte) and Dawson, (Wild Horse) is now in effect and no more high capacity wells will be allowed for a while.  Wild Horse and Sand Hills use gas turbine agricultural pivot pumps to put out about 1100 GPM which is adequate for their needs.  Actually, the last I heard, Sand Hills has 3 separate pumping units.

They don't have 3-phase power to run the modern variable frequency pumps that are most efficient and powerfull enough to put out that kind of GPM, so the gas turbine ag pumps are their solution.

More than you needed to know...  (waiver) possibly some of this is slightly in error due to my superficial knowledge....  

[Steve Lang]

 

TIME OUT!  RJ_D

Are you saying that someone is using a gas turbine generator to supply electrical energy to drive a pump or a gasoline powered internal combustion engine to drive a turbine pump?

Generic turbine pumps have a motor topside, with a shaft connecting the motor to the pump impeller and bowls at depth...

[RJ_Daley]

Propane or LP gas, yes!  How else do you think those pivots pump where there is no 3-phaze service?  Hey, you are the expert Steve.  I'm just repeating what I thought I learned in conversations with the folks out there.  Have I miss understood?