Charlotte, N.C. – Jacobsen celebrated Earth Day (April 22) by sponsoring a golf sustainability event in Tennessee. The Earth Day event was hosted by The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay, a national leader in golf course environmental sustainability.
Event attendees learned about the many benefits of creating sustainable golf environments from officials at the State of Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), the University of Tennessee, the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) and Jacobsen.
The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay installed 45 nesting houses, created a large plant bed comprised of 218 plants native to Tennessee, and renovated the golf course’s chemical storage facility. Over 50 acres of the course have been naturalized to minimize maintenance. The Bear Trace is also one of just 939 U.S. golf courses certified by Audubon International and one of only 19 in the state of Tennessee.
In March of 2013, The Bear Trace purchased a fleet of all-electric turf maintenance equipment, including seven Jacobsen ECLIPSE 322 small-area reel mowers. Since that time, the course saved over 9,000 gallons of fuel and posted over 175 days of emission-free operation, resulting in the elimination of over 180,000 pounds of point source CO2 emissions.
Attendees also embarked on a wildlife walk and viewed first-hand some of the environmental initiatives The Bear Trace has implemented. The wildlife walk concluded at a Bald Eagle’s nest perched above one of the course’s putting greens. The feathered family, recently blessed with two eaglets, has become a worldwide phenomenon thanks to the USGA-sponsored Harrison Bay Eagle Cam.
The event also marked The Bear Trace’s recent Golf Environment Organization (GEO) Certification, golf’s international assurance for environmental enhancement and community contribution. Jacobsen President David Withers was on hand to present Paul L. Carter with the GEO Certification.