Welcome to the Official Website
of the
Lone Star Golf Course Superintendents Association
The Lone Star Links
Spring 2011 Online Newsletter
is now ready for viewing
6th Annual
Lone Star Golf Course
Superintendents Association
Texas Cup 18-Hole Two-Man Select Drive
The Golf Club at
Star Ranch
Hutto, TX
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Lone
Star
GCSA
News
MARCH
21,
2011
LEGISLATIVE "FIX" FOR NPDES PERMITS FOR PESTICIDES INTRODUCED IN U.S. HOUSE
Tell Your U.S.
Representative to co-sponsor H.R. 872, the Reducing Regulatory Burdens
Act of 2011. Help Ensure All Pesticide Uses Remain Under Legal
Primacy of FIFRA.
GCSAA is urging members to take action and push for passage of recently introduced legislation (H.R. 872) to amend the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) to clarify that additional Clean Water Act (CWA) permits are not required for pesticide applications made in accordance with FIFRA. To get involved, write your U.S. Representative today using GCSAA's automated online action alert. Encourage your Representative to re-establish the legal primacy of FIFRA over all pesticide uses, as well as inform the EPA and the courts that Congress did not intend other environmental laws to overtake FIFRA by creating duplicative regulatory burdens.
In 2009, the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the EPA's 2006 rule exempting aquatic pesticide applications from CWA National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting. EPA is now forced to develop an NPDES permitting system for pesticide applications in, over or near "waters of the U.S." This one decision nearly doubles the population of entities required to be permitted under the CWA. Starting April 9, 2011, superintendents may be required to meet numerous new planning, performance, recordkeeping and reporting requirements in CWA NPDES permits in addition to meeting the requirements under specific product labels.
The EPA and states must begin implementing and enforcing the permit program on April 9, 2011 unless the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals grants an extension from the EPA to push back this date to October 31, 2011. This permit will preempt the science-based review of pesticides and label requirements for uses regulated under FIFRA. Never in the 62 years of FIFRA or 38 years of the CWA has the federal government required a permit to apply pesticides in, over or near "waters of the U.S." for control of such pests as mosquitoes, forest canopy insects, algae, or invasive aquatic weeds and animals, like Zebra mussel. As a matter of fact, Congress omitted pesticides in 1972 when it enacted the CWA, and despite major rewrites since, has never looked beyond FIFRA for the regulation of pesticides.
On March 2, House Representatives Bob Gibbs (R-OH), Jean Schmidt (R-OH), and Joe Baca (D-CA) introduced H.R. 872, the Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act of 2011, which would eliminate the need for NPDES permits for pesticide applications made in accordance with FIFRA. This legislation would ensure that all pesticide uses would be under the legal primacy of FIFRA and restrict EPA from creating redundant environmental regulations.
Click on this URL to take action now
http://capwiz.com/gcsaa/issues/alert/?alertid=35031506
If your email program does not recognize the URL as a link,
copy the entire URL and paste it into your Web browser.
For help taking action, contact Chava McKeel, senior manager of information and public policy, at 800-472-7878, ext. 3619. For additional background on the issue, review the Inside Your Water column from the May 2010 issue of Golf Course Management magazine and GCSAA's official NPDES comments to EPA on their draft pesticide general permit.
The link above also contains further links for additional information.
Upcoming Events
USGA Regional Conference:
Willow Creek Country Club, Spring, TX
Date: April 4, 2011
Hosted by South Texas GCSA. .30 education points.
For
more
information,
contact Marian Takuski at stgcsa@windstream.net
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Texas Cup: The Golf Club at Star Ranch, Hutto, TX
Date:
Wednesday,
May
4th, 1:00 PM Shotgun
Lunch prior to the event. See the attached brochure:
Sponsor: C&M Golf and Grounds Equipment
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TTA Summer Conference: July 10-12
Hyatt Lost Pines Resort
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2011 Texas Trophy Tournament:
September
-
MORE
INFORMATION COMING SHORTLY!
Adam
and
Alan
Hess. Photo by Gary Newkirk
Did You Know....
Alan D. Hess, CGCS, MG and Director of Course Management for Tour 18 Inc. /Golf Partners Management Ltd. was recognized by the British and International Greenkeeper's Association as a Master Greenkeeper. Ceremonies honoring others and him were held during the annual awards festivities during Harrogate Week, Jan. 16-21, 2011 near Manchester, England. Hess, who is a 30 year member of the Texas Turfgrass Association has been employed with Tour 18 Inc. since 1994.
Additionally, he first became a member of South Texas GCSA in 1978, and is a 31 year member of GCSAA. Hess, has served as President of the Texas Turfgrass Association (1987), Old Dominion GCSA (1993), and Lone Star GCSA (2005). As a graduate holding Bachelor of Science Degrees from both the University of Texas at Austin (1975) and Texas A&M University (1980), he becomes one of 55 people that are recognized world wide as Master Greenkeeper's. Of those, 20 individuals hold both the CGCS and MG designations.
Hess, is also father of the 2010 GCSAA Champion Golfer Adam Hess. Adam, formerly assistant superintendent at Tour 18 at Augusta Pines Golf Club is now superintendent at Tour 18 at Rose Creek Golf Club in Edmond, OK. .
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Lastly...
Please keep us updated on your email addresses changes. We have over 700 people on our email list, and it's hard to keep on top of all the changes unless you let me know. Just email me at lsgcsa@gmail.com
It's a pleasure to be of service to you! Please email or call me with suggestions or comments. Only you can help us improve!
Sincerely,
Karen White
Lone Star GCSA
(972)
307-8162 lsgcsa@gmail.com
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the Lone Star GCSA's email newsletter? It's chock-full of current information
for Texas golf course superintendents and turfgrass industry members. Stay
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Our Mission
1. To enhance communications between local chapters, uniting them into a single stronger voice for
all Texas Golf Course Superintendents.
2. Form a stronger voting block and promote future National director candidates.
3. To organize and monitor the Texas Trophy Golf Tournament.
4. To track legislation in order to protect the best interests of all Texas Superintendents.
5. To enhance the image of Golf Superintendents locally as well as nationally.
