Why the golf courses of Lyon persist in watering their greens despite a devastating drought
By Anthony Sudani
Published on
This is the question that many Lyonnais and inhabitants of the Metropolis ask themselves. While everyone is constrained in its use in the water in the Rhône, why can golf clubs continue to water their greens?
Simply because the law allows it. Everything is written in the guide for implementing measures to restrict water use in times of drought, published by the Ministry of Ecological Transition in June 2022.
Golf courses are just obeying the law
There are four different levels of restrictions. At the first threshold (drought vigilance), raising awareness of the rules for good use of water saving is sufficient for golf courses.
At the second threshold (drought alert), it is forbidden to water golf courses from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. “so as to reduce water consumption on the weekly volume by 15 to 30%”.
At the third threshold (enhanced alert), golf clubs are forced to reduce volumes by at least 60%. It becomes forbidden to water the fairways, these mowed and rolled areas of a golf course, between the tee and the green.
At the crisis threshold (maximum alert level), it is forbidden to water the golf courses but… “the greens could however be preserved, except in the event of a shortage of drinking water, by watering reduced to what is strictly necessary between 8 p.m. 8 a.m., and which cannot designate more than 30% of the usual volumes, ”we can read in this ministry guide.
Eric Piolle, mayor of Grenoble: “the practices of the wealthiest are protected”
A fine that can be unfair, especially on the side of environmentalists. At the end of July, Eric Piolle, mayor of Grenoble, protested against this authorization during an interview granted to BFM TV.
“In the anti-drought decrees, there is a possibility to allow the golf greens to be watered! While we call for sobriety, the practices of the richest are protected, ”he tweeted in the wake of the interview.
If the green is not watered, what happens?
Contacted by News Lyon, the Golf du Mionnay did not wish to react. Others did not provide any answers but confirmed that he respected the law by continuing to water the greens as strictly necessary between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m.
The Lyon-Verger golf course, in Saint-Symphorien-d’Ozon (Rhône), explained that if the green was not watered, it was “dead” and then became “unrecoverable”.
Asked by Lyon Capital, Pierre Athanaze, vice-president of the metropolis of Lyon in charge of the environment, says he understands this measure: “if the greens are not watered, they will have to be redone at the start of the school year… so that these places are watered is not not shocking. »
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