SUSTAINABILITY PLAN AND POLICY
Ballyliffin Golf Club takes its responsibility as a custodians of the natural land very seriously, and the club has made a tremendous effort in managing our resources as efficiently as possible to minimise our environmental impact on the delicate ecosystems we occupy. We have introduced a number of initiatives across all aspects of the business to tackle key environmental concerns surrounding land and water use, energy management, carbon footprint, waste generation and biodiversity.
Preserving the natural integrity of the landscape while ensuring an enjoyable, relaxing, and rewarding golfing experience for our members involves careful and continuous management of our resources across all aspects of our business. Our greenkeeping team carefully ensure our grasses get adequate water, sunlight, and fertilization, while maintaining free of invasive pests and diseases. To assist with this, we ensure the grass is regularly audited by an independent agronomist who assesses the land and suggests how we can improve the integrity of the soil and ensure the protection of biodiversity and local ecosystems.
We carefully manage and minimise the water we use to irrigate the links through our automated irrigation system with controlled rotational sprinkler heads and use natural water sources such as on-site boreholes. We also minimise the use of both herbicides and fungicides as much as possible and adhere to a lean fertilization application processes which significantly limits the use of nitrogen-based fertilizer on the land. We adhere to strict buffer zones around areas which are particularly vulnerable to pollution and avoid mowing and spraying fertilizer around these areas to ensure biodiversity protection.
We continue to monitor our carbon footprint on an annual basis and reducing our emissions is a key consideration in the introduction and implementation of key sustainable practices and policy within the business. For example, in 2022, we installed a 70 kWp solar PV system on our premises and by generating our own electricity, our carbon footprint has reduced by nearly 20 tonnes of Carbon Dioxide each year, and saving the club significant energy costs. On top of this, we have also implemented a number of energy efficient technologies across the business in areas such as electric carts and mowers, energy efficient lighting, heating, and cooking. The installation of water fonts around the courses has significantly reduced the need for single use plastics and we recycle all plastics, cardboard and glass in the clubhouse.
Ballyliffin has also become GEO Certified, signifying our commitment to social and environmental stewardship and wellbeing. We continue to foster this commitment of continuous improvement across all facets of our club, especially in areas outside of our operational boundaries. We continue to work with national bodies, such as the OPW, on environmental conservation projects within the community. One key issue that is of particular importance to us is the protection and conservation of the Ballyliffin coastline We have made it a key goal in continuing to partner with those who aim to benefit the community as a whole and will continue to support these projects in whatever capacity we can.
Preserving the natural integrity of the landscape while ensuring an enjoyable, relaxing, and rewarding golfing experience for our members involves careful and continuous management of our resources across all aspects of our business. Our greenkeeping team carefully ensure our grasses get adequate water, sunlight, and fertilization, while maintaining free of invasive pests and diseases. To assist with this, we ensure the grass is regularly audited by an independent agronomist who assesses the land and suggests how we can improve the integrity of the soil and ensure the protection of biodiversity and local ecosystems.
We carefully manage and minimise the water we use to irrigate the links through our automated irrigation system with controlled rotational sprinkler heads and use natural water sources such as on-site boreholes. We also minimise the use of both herbicides and fungicides as much as possible and adhere to a lean fertilization application processes which significantly limits the use of nitrogen-based fertilizer on the land. We adhere to strict buffer zones around areas which are particularly vulnerable to pollution and avoid mowing and spraying fertilizer around these areas to ensure biodiversity protection.
We continue to monitor our carbon footprint on an annual basis and reducing our emissions is a key consideration in the introduction and implementation of key sustainable practices and policy within the business. For example, in 2022, we installed a 70 kWp solar PV system on our premises and by generating our own electricity, our carbon footprint has reduced by nearly 20 tonnes of Carbon Dioxide each year, and saving the club significant energy costs. On top of this, we have also implemented a number of energy efficient technologies across the business in areas such as electric carts and mowers, energy efficient lighting, heating, and cooking. The installation of water fonts around the courses has significantly reduced the need for single use plastics and we recycle all plastics, cardboard and glass in the clubhouse.
Ballyliffin has also become GEO Certified, signifying our commitment to social and environmental stewardship and wellbeing. We continue to foster this commitment of continuous improvement across all facets of our club, especially in areas outside of our operational boundaries. We continue to work with national bodies, such as the OPW, on environmental conservation projects within the community. One key issue that is of particular importance to us is the protection and conservation of the Ballyliffin coastline We have made it a key goal in continuing to partner with those who aim to benefit the community as a whole and will continue to support these projects in whatever capacity we can.
