TURF INDUSTRY NEWS

STMA Awards Environmental Facility Certification to 18 Facilities Sports Turf Managers Association (STMA) – the professional association for 2,600 men and women who manage sports fields worldwide has recognized 18 facilities with its Environmental Facility Certification. Tese STMA members and their facilities showcase ecological stewardship and sustainable best practices. To achieve the prestigious certification, the site must attain an 80 percent score within each section. Facilities will remain certified for a three-year period, at which point a recertification process takes place. A facility’s field manager must complete an initial online assessment followed by an on-site walk-through validation with an attester. Te assessment covers 10 environmental practice areas, including storm water management; fertilization; pesticides/Integrated Pest Management (IPM); recycling; composting; mowing; energy conservation; shop buildings and storage areas; irrigation and water quality testing; and educational outreach. Te complete list of designees is available at www.stma.org.

WE ARE GOLF Celebrates National Golf Day's 10th Anniversary WE ARE GOLF—a coalition of the game’s leading associations and industry partners—visited Capitol Hill on April 26 for the 10th annual National Golf Day to discuss the game’s nearly $70 billion economic impact, $4 billion annual charitable impact, environmental value to local communities and fitness benefits. A record 175 Congressional meetings were scheduled and nearly 200 attendees from 35 U.S. states participated. Industry leaders met with Members of Congress, the Executive Branch and Federal agencies to highlight the two million jobs impacted by golf and the nearly $4 billion raised for charitable causes through 143,000 philanthropic events annually. Troughout the day, participants shared stories about the game’s 15,000-plus diverse businesses, tax revenue creation, accessibility, tourism, ecological value and the fact that one in 75 U.S. jobs is impacted by the industry. New for 2017, more than 100 golf industry leaders participated in a community service initiative on the National Mall the morning of April 25. Te initiative focused on beautification, preservation and helping the National Park Service with turf deferred maintenance. Organizations participating were the Club Managers Association of America, Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA), Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA), Links to Freedom, National Alliance for Accessible Golf, National Golf Course Owners Association, PGA TOUR, Salute Military Golf Association, Te First Tee, U.S. Golf Manufacturers Council, USGA, World Golf Foundation and several others.

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Rex Bishop Joins NALP as Director of Technical Education Te National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP} has announced that Rex Bishop, an award-winning horticulture educator, has joined the association as its first Director of Technical Education. Bishop is known to many in the industry for his volunteer work with the National Collegiate Landscape Competition and commitment to workforce and education issues through the association. Bishop has an MBA from Kennesaw State University. He worked in the nursery industry before teaching horticultural and landscaping at the college level for more than 25 years, most recently serving as the Vice President for Economic Development at Chattahoochee Technical College.

Journal of Environmental Horticulture Expands Scope and Accessibility Te Journal of Environmental Horticulture, a publication of the Horticultural Research Institute (HRI), has taken a major step forward to increase access to and visibility of horticultural research. Te Journal will celebrate its 35th year by migrating from a subscription-based model to an open-access model and revamping the online user experience. Eliminating subscription fees means more industry professionals will have important research results at their fingertips. Te new platform offers an easy-to-navigate design with fast and comprehensive search features on all content, dating back to 1983. Furthermore, the scope of the Journal will be broadened to include all aspects of the green industry, to better reflect the industry represented by HRI and AmericanHort, including but not limited to floriculture, herb and vegetable production in controlled environments, container and field nursery production, and all aspects of the managed landscape. To access the new Journal platform, visit www.hrijournal.org.

TurfMutt Named an Official Education Partner of the USGBC

Te U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has named TurfMutt, the environmental stewardship and education program for students in grades K-5, an official education partner. Educational activities for grades K-5 developed for TurfMutt by Scholastic, the global children’s

publishing, education and media company, will be featured on Learning Lab, USGBC’s online platform for K-12 curriculum. Te science-based online lessons will help teachers and excite students in K-5 about caring for green spaces. Kris Kiser, president and CEO of the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute and its education foundation says, “Trough TurfMutt’s science-based lessons, students learn to be backyard superheroes who care for and defend green spaces, like their family yard. Te program also encourages children to get outside and teaches them responsibility for our valuable landscapes.”

nd TPI Turf News July/August 2017