The First Green Foundation - Environmental Education Using Links as Labs

by David Phipps GCSAA Field Staff, NW Region

Community outreach and education can be a stumbling block for some superintendents seeking certification through a program such as the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program. This is far from the truth when it comes to the superintendents from the State of Washington.

At Glendale Country Club in Bellevue, Wash. near Seattle, Steve Kealy, CGCS has hosted countless fieldtrips involving students from all walks of life.  Steve is a founding member of a growing program in Washington State called First Green. First Green helps superintendents connect with local educators and develops educational programs that are tailored for children using golf courses as learning laboratories. Golf course superintendents can host students on field trips where they test water quality, take soil samples, plant flower beds, or simply learn what is involved in maintaining a golf course. Education can be anything related to the ecology and environmental aspects of the golf course to learning the business of operating a restaurant or a clothing shop.

As reported in 2007, over 8,000 students in Washington State have participated in the program. A total of $110,000 in student scholarships and teacher grants has been provided since 2002. Karen Armstead, the Executive Director, is currently seeking a grant which will enable them to bring the program to the State of Oregon and increase its participation in Eastern Washington.

Aware that I have hosted several fieldtrips with local schools as part of my community outreach program at Stone Creek, Steve Kealy contacted me early last May and asked if I would like to come up and be part of one of his events. I jumped at the opportunity and headed north to Bellevue, Wash. to get a firsthand look at First Green in action. Now that I am working for GCSAA, I took the opportunity to attend once again this year and am combining the experiences of both years into one story.

Learning Stations

Last year Steve was hosting fifty seventh graders from Sacred Heart, a local private school. This year Sacred Heart was there once again, but there was also an additional school there, totaling 90 students all together.  There were five learning stations set up in which the kids would spend about 25 minutes at each station. Steve had also asked three other local superintendents help with the field trip so they took time out of their schedule to be a part of the program. Steve and First Green have done such a wonderful job promoting the program that now outside environmental groups are asking to be a part of the program. In a way this has been a windfall for the program. Now First Green is not only reaching out to the children but is having an impact on local environmental groups.  I actually overheard one of the outside volunteers say that they had always viewed the golf course as the source of the problem, but now after being part of this program I see that they are critical to the success of our local streams.  That speaks loudly in terms of our mission to educate the non golfing public on the environmental benefits golf courses provide to local ecosystems.  In 2012 there were two outside groups taking part of the program.  Both years I was able to get around to the different stations and observe the activities the children were taking part in. Each station, everyone seemed to be interested in the topic at hand and was totally engaged in the lesson.

Soils

I joined the first group and they were learning soils from Jim Myers, superintendent at the Plateau Club in Sammamish and Greg Hall, superintendent at Fairwood Golf and Country Club in Renton. Jim was in the process of testing the pH of soil they had helped the students prepare a vial of soil with a solution that would turn the soil a certain color after thoroughly mixing for 10 minutes.

While the student was gently turning over the vial to mix its contents Jim pulled out a sand sieve and explained why superintendents need sand with a fairly uniform particle size. Jim then had a student place a scoop of sand in the top of the sieve and demonstrated how the different layers of the sieve captured different particle sizes of the sand. He explained how we can interpret the results and determine if the sand was appropriate for his needs. Jim then explained how he used the sand by spreading it on the grass, being very careful not to use terms such as “topdress” which may be unfamiliar with the kids. He explained how it benefits the roots by creating airspace and enabling oxygen to become available in the soil.

Meanwhile Jim’s volunteer continued to keep the soil sample vial in motion and it was time to determine the pH. With a simple color chart the students were able to determine that pH was right around 6.5. At this point they discussed pH and what was meant by the numbers 1 through 14. Jim asked them to give some examples of an acid and some examples of a base. The great thing was the students knew and were able to give examples such as citric acid as a low pH and dishwasher soap as a high pH. When asked where plants like to live they were all right on saying between 6 and 7.

From there, Greg Hall took over and walked the students down to the eighteenth green and plunged a soil sampler in the middle of the green and gathered the students around to look at the roots. Greg related what Jim just explained to them about applying sand to the surface of the grass to provide greater porosity and increased root development. They identified the thatch layer and discussed how superintendents manage that layer to keep the grass healthy.

As I sat back and took some photos, I could tell that Jim and Greg were really enjoying what they were doing. They were simply explaining what they do, day in and day out and were giving these students a glimpse of why science is important in their daily lives. At that point I realized that I didn’t have to always do these fieldtrips on my own. Seeking volunteers from local courses was a great idea. Jim and Greg did a fantastic job at engaging the kid and were having a great time doing it.

This year, Steve had his Assistant Superintendents, Kyle Young and Josh Cheney, lead the class. Kyle and Josh talked about the three elements of soil structure: sand, silt and clay. They provided some excellent examples of water infiltration rates and discussed how important the use of sand is on a golf course. I loved the fact that Steve engaged his assistants. Kyle and Josh were learning the process and will then in turn carry it on to their courses should they become a superintendents.

Storm Water

In 2011, Steve Kealy and Craig Benson of Meridian Valley Country Club were giving the lesson on storm water. Steve began the lesson by walking to the top of the golf course to the main entrance. We all stood around a catch basin that was located in the middle of the road. On a label next to the grate was a plaque which read “Don’t Pollute, Drains to Kelsey Creek”. Steve and Craig held up a large aerial photograph of the golf course and described the path the water must take as it drains to the creek. He pointed out how the surface of the ground can affect the rate in which the water travels.

Kelsey Creek runs right through the center of Glendale and it also happens to be the main source of drainage for a large portion of the City of Bellevue. Kelsey Creek also happens to be an active salmon bearing stream which connects to the Puget Sound. This lead to the discussion of the fate of our water as it leaves our homes. Steve separated the water in to two categories; water inside the house and water outside the house. The inside water, or sewer, comes from our showers, sinks, and toilets and goes to the treatment plant where the water can be reclaimed or cleaned and discharged back to a stream or even used to irrigate a golf course. The outside water, or storm water, comes from our roof and gutters and from the water that we use to wash our cars as well as the water we use to irrigate our lawns. This water generally flows into gutters and storm pipes and is discharged directly to our streams. It is this water that we can take an active role in preventing from carrying pollution to our streams. The students were quick to point out that oil leaking from cars is a problem. Steve also pointed out that by washing your car in your driveway can lead to excessive phosphates in the streams. As Steve directed their attention to the neighboring houses, he also pointed out how a misplaced fertilizer application can also lead to pollution and he stressed how important it is to sweep it off the sidewalk and back on the grass where it belongs.

Steve continued to discuss the different ways our streams can get polluted and noticed the kids’ attention span was waning. He quickly made eye contact with the students and politely engaged them by asking them questions which led right to the key point of the discussion. I was impressed to see Steve using a proper technique to regain their attention and equally impressed to see the students were quick to respond and get back on track.

On the way back down the hill, Steve stopped by a new renovation project that the club had recently undergone. Glendale Country Club chose to use a green roof on their new proshop; this became a great learning point as Steve pointed out the cooling benefits as well as how it slows the rate in which the water travels from the roof to the gutter and finally to the stream.

In 2012 Steve lead a different class on water. He had the students determining the cubic feet per second (CFS) of Kelsey Creek. Using tennis balls, he had a student toss them one at a time into the stream, and time each over a set distance, and then identify the average speedtime it took to travel the distance. He then had them calculate the depth of the stream with the help of one of his assistants. They measured 15 points across the stream then took an average and then used the two numbers to calculate the rate in which the stream was flowing. They came up with cubic feet per second, cubic feet per minute, and cubic feet per hour. The number got so large they had to convert it to total acre feet. The exercise demonstrated the importance of math beyond formal education. Steve also used the message to describe how much water is reaching our bays and lakes just from storm water runoff. He used the example of a football field. Using just 75 yards and one foot deep, it would equate to an acre foot of water. When they realized how many acre feet of water ran down that stream in an hour they were amazed.

Water Quality

In 2011, one of the stations was at Kelsey Creek where they examined the water and talked about salmon. When we arrived, Melanie Baker from Nature Vision was there to lead the group. First Green has hooked up with Nature Vision to help provide hands-on programs for the students. It is a natural relationship since it is also the goal of Nature Vision to foster appreciation and stewardship of the environment through integration of school and community for a sustainable future. The point of Melanie’s discussion was to teach the students the benefit of clean water and how it affects salmon. Melanie first explained the life cycle of the Puget Sound salmon, from where they are hatched to the range in which they feed, which can be from as far away as Alaska and Japan.

The important part of the salmon’s life cycle is its journey to the spawning ground. There are certain criteria which will enable the salmon to be successful in reaching and producing eggs. Criteria include the pH, temperature, and the dissolved oxygen content of the stream. The students were there to test for all three. Melanie discussed each test and described the optimum range in which each should occur. The first test was the temperature. Streams often become too warm from a lack of vegetation and cover. The students discussed how they could benefit the stream and what could be done to keep it cool. They agreed that getting involved in stream enhancement groups and planting native materials around the stream and removing invasive species would have a positive effect.

The next test was pH. In order to spawn successfully, salmon need a neutral pH of around 7.0. Melanie asked the students of examples of high pH solutions as well as low pH solutions. I thought it was great that the first thing they rattled off was dish soap for a high pH. This tells me that the community is doing a good job of educating the young on the protection of their natural resources. The students proceeded to take the test and using a color chart they were able to compare colors of the water solution and determine that the pH was between 6.5 and 7.0.

Dissolved oxygen is also important in the life cycle of the salmon. Melanie compared the salmon’s journey up the stream to that of an athlete. As an athlete needs oxygen to supply their lungs which supply rich blood to their muscles, the salmon need oxygen in the water to supply their muscles too. As they swim up the stream they incur many obstacles which will cause the fish to work hard if there isn’t sufficient oxygen in the water to supply the salmon it may never make it to its final destination. In order to insure a successful migration the Oxygen level should be around 20%. The students were then able to determine what created oxygen in the stream and it was easy to see that Glendale was doing their part by the log structures that had been installed in the creek which cause the water to churn and create bubbles. The structures also created natural gravel beds in which the salmon could lay their eggs.

Salmon

This year Moira Campbell, another volunteer from Nature Vision, taught the station on the salmon life cycle. The beauty of having outside groups teaching these classes is they come complete with visual aids. Moira was no exception. First she demonstrated the importance of oxygenated water to developing salmon eggs. She used two clear containers with water in them -- one with large pea gravel and the other with sandy silt. She placed bright red marbles in each and had two volunteers swirl them around for a period of time then had the students look at the containers. There were clear voids of space between the eggs in the pea gravel but the eggs in the sandy silt were buried and it was clear they would not survive. This lead to the discussion of protecting the stream banks with proper vegetation to prevent erosion. Moira’s next discussion was on the stages of the salmon’s life cycle. First she held up a large stuffed egg followed by a stuffed alevin, a fry, a smolt and then a stuffed spawning adult. The more visual aids and hands on you can provide for the kids the better the learning experience can be.

Invertebrates

This year, one of the more popular stations was learning about invertebrates. Laurie Deveraux from the City of Bellevue’s Stream Team was there to lead the discussion. Laurie had dipped water samples including some of the natural vegetation from along the pond. The samples contained many living organisms which the students used spoons to dip and place in small plastic containers. From there, they were instructed to draw the insect and then later they were able to identify them using a poster that Laurie had provided.

Laurie’s take-home message was “Only rain goes down the drain”. She talked about what we put on the ground has the potential to reach our lakes and streams. The class identified washing cars in the driveways, misapplication of fertilizers, and not picking up after your dogs, as way of polluting our streams. In the middle of the session, KOMO News showed up and started filming. I was impressed how well the kids behaved when the camera was only feet from their face.

Some may wonder what the members think about this program and having children running around their course. Steve said that the majority of the visits occur on Mondays when the course is normally closed but recently he has been asked by members if they can participate. The Glendale membership now contributes $10 per member to the First Green Foundation annually and that trend is beginning to grow as other clubs in the area find out and not wanting to be outdone.

Thousands of children have been touched by this program in Washington State. It is the goal of First Green to grow and offer the program to other states as well. For further information on First Green please visit their website at: www.TheFirstGreen.org.

Editor's note:  The first 'First Green' to be held in Canada took place at the Vancouver Golf Club this past May, hosted by Superintendent Dave Kennedy and Assistant, Pete Rodrigues  CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO.  Sponsored by the WCTA, we hope to promote this amazing program throughout western Canada.  A demonstration for superintendents, put on by Steve Keely and Karen Armstead, will take palce at the Victoria conference this coming March.