SAV I N G WAT E R
T E C H N I C A L U P D AT E
ADVICE TO TAP INTO
All sports facilities and organisations have a role in conserving water, and grounds staff can help reduce the pressure on resources while also providing good playing surfaces by adapting pitch maintenance routines
G
ood club and facility management is essential at all times, and during spells of water shortages and drought everyone should be involved – the committee and management teams – not just grounds staff. Co-ordinating fixtures, facility availability and pitch rotation are all key tasks, and it is important to educate members and users with appropriate messaging on signs and via newsletters, websites and social media. Tough decisions on surface safety, fixture cancellation and 34 THE GROUNDSMAN August 2018
renovation and construction projects may also be needed, and such decisions have a better chance of being understood if there is clear communication with members, users and stakeholders.
HINDSIGHT IS WONDERFUL
In drought areas it is particularly important to use water as efficiently as possible and to minimise waste, as this will help reduce the impact of drought on the environment and on others – including us in our homes – and it will extend the period before hosepipe bans
“It is important to educate members with appropriate messaging on signs and via newsletters, websites and social media”