Water usage is an essential and frequent topic in the greater Moab area: the City of Moab is currently drafting a “water-efficient landscaping” ordinance, water resource management plan, and sustainability master plan, all of which will address water use. When residents think about who in the valley uses the most water, fingers may point to hotel pools (Moab has 46 hotels with pools, according to Google Maps), to restaurants, and to the city-owned 18-hole public golf course south of town.
However, this is not the case: according to the city’s 2021 Water Conservation Plan, since 2019, residents have used the most water within the city. In 2020, for example, residents used about 166.5 gallons per capita per day; commercial use in the same year added up to about 89.23 gallons per capita per day. The plan notes that overnight accommodations account for about 16% of commercial water use. Expressed in another unit commonly used to measure water consumption, residential water use in Moab in 2020 added up to about 1,000 acre-feet (one acre-foot of water is about 326,000 gallons).
According to data obtained by The Salt Lake Tribune, the Moab Golf Course uses an average of about 331 acre-feet annually. That’s over 100 million gallons.
A closer look at the golf course
In April 2023, the Tribune reported on how much water golf courses used across Utah by obtaining data through public use records; this reporting followed a failed bill introduced during this year’s legislative session that would have required golf courses across the state to track and share their water use data.
Based on these findings, over the past five years, the Moab Golf Course uses an average amount of 331 acre-feet annually (one acre-foot equals about 326,000 gallons). The golf course uses water from the Grand Water & Sewer Service Agency (GWSSA). It also has exclusive access to water from one of the city’s supplying wells (the city draws water from four springs and three wells); according to the Water Conservation Plan (page 14), “Well #7 is used exclusively by the Golf Course for spring irrigation to make up for shortfalls when their usual source (GWSSA) does not have enough to supply.”
For comparison, of all the courses investigated by the Tribune, Copper Club Golf Course in Magna, Utah, appeared to use the most water at about 1,085 acre-feet per year. Out of 81 golf courses throughout the state that provided data, the overall average of acre-feet used in 2022 was 286 annually.
Golf courses often have a bad rap on water use. Still, they provide many benefits to a community: They provide recreation for many locals and tourists, employ community members, generate economic activity, and contribute dollars to charity organizations. Being outdoors and participating in golfing is also a mental health boost and social activity for many.
The city owns the Moab Golf Course, and is currently in the process of updating its sustainability plan to incorporate waterwise landscaping. Meanwhile, managers at the course have already been striving to reduce water use at the facility.
According to Rob Jones, the “everything guy,” or general manager, of the Moab Golf Course, staff have actively applied waterwise strategies to the 18-hole, 242-acre course.
“We don’t want to be a bad neighbor,” Jones said, adding that the golf course’s landscaping is unique: it’s been “carved out of the desert,” he said, landscaped with a mix of native vegetation and managed green spaces.
Brown patches of grass are expected, Jones said, and are also “the name of the game.” Eliminating turf and unnecessary sprinkler heads is vital to a sustainable site: the golf course has done this in the spaces between some holes, allowing desert vegetation to repopulate these areas.
“We recognize sacrifice areas and use low-tech solutions, such as going from a full head sprinkler system at some locations to a half circle irrigation pattern,” Jones said. “We are allowing an area to grow back to its native state. We can trim out spots where golfers won’t notice a difference.”
Other key management factors include the timing of watering and finding what is most effective for business. A smart water window of 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 a.m. allows the course to be watered when players are not present.
“It’s a fine balance to make it playable. Having too wet of a course can bring pests and diseases,” Jones said.
According to Joshua Virostko, president of the Utah Golf Course Superintendents Association, “Wet conditions also make it more difficult for our maintenance practices to take place, and golfers despise playing golf on a soggy golf course.”
Managing a smart waterwise recreation area is challenging now for the course. Irrigation is aging, and upgrades come with a hefty price tag. Course staff hope to collaborate with the city to improve infrastructure in the future. Another target is incorporating the driving range into a future bee/pollinator garden that can serve a multipurpose approach. Wildlife already inhabit the golf course: a population of up to 18 wild turkeys currently call the Moab Golf Course home. The greenery on the course also provides shade, prevents soil erosion, and reduces dust and noise within the area.
“Most people don’t realize that in an ever-urbanizing Utah, golf courses give homes to native species of insects and animals with no place to go,” Yirostko said. “Utah’s courses are home to deer, waterfowl, and countless other creatures big and small. Golf courses are an ecosystem and home to these animals.”
Yirostko also said golf course managers care about water conservation too.
“It is not understood that this industry is full of dedicated professionals just like every other industry in Utah, that we strive for excellence, that we are concerned about water more than most,” Yirostko said. “It affects every aspect of our personal and professional life.”
Best return on water use
City staff are researching the latest information on water use and ways to reduce it in households, businesses and city-owned facilities. Guidance from the city council and planning departments will help implement a sustainable water use plan.
Alexi Lamm, the City of Moab sustainability director, said the city is looking into the best places to use water so that the community can benefit the most. The sustainability plan actively looks at different measures of water needed for a yard vs. active recreation areas (golf courses, soccer fields, parks, etc.).
“The management practices are different for different uses,” Lamm said. “All landscapes can have good and effective uses, and there is a lot we can do and still enjoy activities we like. We can never use a zero amount of water.”
The city works with nonprofits the Water NOW Alliance and Western Resource Advocates, and with Utah State University Extension. Keeping the community informed and changing the public’s water use behavior is a conservation goal.
The city is also looking to improve landscaping ordinances. The recent Water Conservation Plan highlights how the city will view new construction in the area, mainly focused on commercial and residential properties and requiring new development to use waterwise landscaping and irrigation principles, limit or omit turfgrass, and include gray water systems. Other solutions include irrigation audits, public education outreach, and instituting outdoor landscape water rules for everyone during times of drought. Incorporating the smart use of specific plant species that work well within our environment is also vital.
“Water is life. We need enough for ourselves, landscape, and agriculture and to think about how to use water to the greatest benefit for all,” Lamm said.
