Nationwide study into golf's water resilience and future supply options

We are urging BIGGA members across England and Wales to play a central role in helping their clubs complete the national water census.

As greenkeepers, you hold much of the knowledge needed to build an accurate picture of how water is sourced, stored and used on your course. Your club's response will depend on that expertise, so please take an active role in gathering and supplying the information. 

The Environment Agency and the combined wholesale and retail water sector for England and Wales, in partnership with England Golf, BIGGA and the GCMA, are undertaking a nation-wide study on Golf Sector Resilience and Alternative Water Supply Options.

Results from this project will help understand current water use, the scale of alternative water use opportunity and help the golf sector improve water resilience going forward. The survey's results will identify the opportunities for alternative water supplies and water storage needed to replace the sector's reliance on potable water for irrigation. 

The study will be informing future changes to water abstraction and water storage rules, with the aim of enabling greater flexibility to future water access. This study will be quantifying the demand reduction potential in relation to national and regional water targets and pave the way for improving the resilience of golf clubs across the country. 

The recent Water Efficiency 'State of the Nation' report outlined the pressures facing golf and options for improving resilience, including capturing rainfall, increasing storage and using water more efficiently. This census, conducted by Sporting Insights, will help fill gaps in that evidence and establish where alternative supplies could make a difference. 

For our members, this is an opportunity to help shape decisions that affect your ability to maintain playing surfaces and plan for the future. A comprehensive response will help ensure those decisions reflect the practical needs of golf courses. 

We need every golf course to help. Results from this project are aimed to help every golf club. If there are any questions in relation to consumption data that club managers or course managers need any assistance with, please refer to your water bill in the first instance (e.g. water volumes m³), alternatively, reach out to your water retailer or wholesale water provider. 

Please speak to your club manager or whoever will coordinate your club's response to agree how you can help gather the information needed. Some details will come from water bills and other club records, but your knowledge of irrigation, water sources and storage will be central to completing the questionnaire. Even if you are not submitting the response yourself, your contribution is essential. 

The Environment Agency and MOSL will have access to the survey's raw data. Project partners will receive anonymised, aggregated results. The questionnaire also asks whether your club consents to identifiable data being shared with golf sector partners and the relevant Regional Water Resources Group. 

This is not just another survey. This will be the water census for the English and Welsh golf sectors. 

Access the questionnaire here.

Thank you for helping your club contribute to a more water-resilient future for golf.