Kansas, United States: Josh Heptig, the Director of Golf Course Operations with San Luis Obispo County Parks in central California for the past eight years, has been selected to receive the 2017 President’s Award for Environmental Stewardship by the Board of Directors of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA).
Heptig, 40, will officially receive the award on February 7, during the Opening Session of the 2017 Golf Industry Show in Orlando. The Opening Session is presented in partnership with Syngenta, an Executive Member of the Asian Golf Industry Federation.
The GCSAA President’s Award for Environmental Stewardship was established in 1991 to recognise ‘an exceptional environmental contribution to the game of golf; a contribution that further exemplifies the golf course superintendent’s image as a steward of the land’.
“Josh’s work is a positive example for all superintendents,” said GCSAA President Pete Grass, Certified Golf Course Superintendent (CGCS). “Through his impactful environmental stewardship at his golf operation and in his surrounding community, he is demonstrating how we can all be less wasteful, which leads to healthy environments through professional management. We are pleased to honour him for his accomplishments.”
Heptig, whose 18-hole Dairy Creek facility has been working increasingly toward zero waste since 201, said: “This is a huge honour, and I am shocked to even be in the conversation for this award. If we can help our communities, we are helping ourselves and our profession. Solving problems is what golf superintendents do.”
Heptig, a 17-year-member of the GCSAA, is an industry leader for zero waste management. The initiative at Dairy Creek started by composting organic materials as a way to reduce food waste from the facility. He started using a compost tea on portions of the practice putting green with successful results.
He then collaborated with a turf professor at California Polytechnic State University (Col-Poly), for more successful compost tea trials on putting greens. As a result, Dairy Creek Zero Waste Park eliminated 65,000 pounds of food waste from the local landfill in its first three years of operation.
“I think zero waste is a mantra for golf course operations,” said Heptig. “Our ultimate goal is to lead by example and help inspire future environmental stewards. It’s about people, planet and profits. Non-golfers who come to our facility can’t believe that the actions of a golf course can change a community.”
Heptig oversees Morro Bay and Chalk Mountain golf courses in addition to Dairy Creek. But before he came to San Luis Obispo County, Heptig had started waste management programmes where he was employed at Indiana and Arkansas courses.
Heptig gives credit for his environmental passion to his wife Christiane Schroeter, PhD at Cal-Poly, who he met while in college, and to Professor Jack Fry, PhD at Kansas State University, for encouraging him to get involved and make a difference within the golf industry.
Heptig is involved in the Central California Golf Course Superintendents Association as a past officer and president, and has recently been nominated to serve on the California Golf Course Owners Association Board of Directors. He has shared his innovative ideas as a presenter at the Symposium on Affordable Golf and at the Sustainability in Golf conference and at past Golf Industry Shows.
He visits with golfers on the courses he manages every chance he gets and even reaches out to local residents to show how they can apply sustainable practices in their homes.
“I enjoy having people at our golf properties so I can show them what we are doing,” said Heptig. “Each course that a superintendent manages provides multiple benefits to our communities. It is rewarding to be an advocate for all of the good that the golf industry does and to spread the message that aspires to change the negative perception people may have about what we really do.”