Laying Lightly on the Land

By Brian Kington
Landscape Architect
Love & Dodson, LLC

Laying lightly on the land is a catch phrase many designers and journalists are quick to use when describing a golf course they feel has been developed sensitively with minimal environmental impacts to the property on which it was sited. It is important, however, to make the distinction between golf courses that are purported to “lay lightly on the land” because they are designed to fit compatibly with existing topography, with the goal of minimizing the amount of dirt that is moved during construction, and a golf course that really does lay lightly on the land.

Golf courses have occasionally received recognition for being environmentally sensitive because they were designed and constructed without moving much dirt at all. So? In reality, the amount of dirt moved during the development of a new golf course has only little influence on the overall environmental sensitivity or sustainability of the finished product. In reality, a golf course that lays lightly on the land is sited, designed, constructed and managed using principles of sustainability. This means creating a sustainable golf course is a process that, to be successful, must start during site selection and must continue through site review and analysis, design, construction and post-construction management of the course.

Each site is different and subsequently a thorough analysis and inventory of the site is critical to ensuring design decisions are made with the most comprehensive understanding of the property and its ecosystems. Preserving natural drainage patterns, minimizing impacts to wetlands and other sensitive areas, protecting existing wildlife habitat and plant habitat, and much more, including minimizing earthwork are all very important design considerations. Conservation of natural resources, improved water quality, Best Management Practices and habitat enhancement should be standard goals for any golf course designer and manager, and promote cost effective development and operation—which are all critical to a creating a sustainable facility.

For a golf course to truly lay lightly on the land, a comprehensive approach to design, development and operation by qualified professionals who embrace principles of sustainability is necessary to ensure a successful, profitable and long term sustainable project.