World Environment Day: Coronavirus and Conservation

Continue to Learn Extra: Conservation in a post-COVID world

 

Presented by Karl Hansell, Greenkeeper International editor

 

With reduced staff on golf courses, is golf course conservation a luxury that we can no longer afford or, with less resources available, is now a better time than ever to think about rewilding areas of your facility for flora and wildlife to flourish?

 

To coincide with World Environment Day, BIGGA’s ecology expert James Hutchinson and Golf Environment Award winner John McLoughlin discuss the role of golf course ecology and conservation in a post-COVID world.

 

Panellists:

 

 

James is an R&A Gold Badge holder. He was previously environmental officer at St Andrews and prior to that has was ecology manager at Fairhaven Golf Club in Lancashire. In his role as Membership Services Manager responsible for ecology and sustainability at BIGGA he provides an amazing service for our members, visiting their courses to learn about what environmental practices they’ve put in place and offer ideas and suggestions to help improve their environmental footprint. He’s visited hundreds of golf courses and is always on the lookout for the next rare orchid or dandelion.

Contact James by emailing james.hutchinson@bigga.co.uk or find out more about BIGGA's services for members by emailing info@bigga.co.uk

James is also in Twitter using @Ecology1BIGGA

 

 

John McLoughlin is course manager at Warrington Golf Club and is about as switched on as it comes when talking about ecology. Unlike myself and James he’s not bad with a golf club in his hands, but it’s in greenkeeping that he has really shone. At the start of this year John and the Warrington team were announced as winners of the Golf Environment Award’s golf course of the year top prize. Some of the work the team at Warrington does includes composting of all green waste and introducing beehives and wildflower areas to the course.

You can find John on Twitter at @johnmac150

Applications are also open to take part in the Golf Environment Awards 2021.

Podcast

The Green Room Golf Course Podcast is produced by Karl Hansell on behalf of the British and International Golf Greenkeepers Association.

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