Bigbury Golf Club

Environmental at Bigbury

Golf Clubs are a dirty business; Our aim is to reduce fossil fuels, waste & energy consumption and use greener chemicals to name just a few...but importantly there ARE very basic changes to practices we can still make to help reach our goal as a sustainable and environmentally bio-diverse destination, within the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). The biggest single hurdle we face is funding and cost of goods.

Below are just a few changes we have already made:

We work with Devon Wildlife Trust in handing back to nature unused areas of the course to fulfill our bio-diversity policy, whilst identifying further areas for improvement.
We have diverse fauna and flora, some of which are: Skylarks, Barn Owls, Greater Spotted Woodpecker, Stonechats, Yellowhammers and Linnets - just a few you can regularly see from the course. We also have wild orchids and a plethora of native wild flowers.
Installed bat boxes on our outlying buidlings and planted approx. 3 acres of wild flower seed to encourage insect activity.
Adopted a 5 year robust Tree Management Plan to enhace the ecology and landscape. View this document by ckicking HERE
Replace felled trees on a one for one basis.
We have changed our energy supply to Engie, who supply us with 100% certified renewable energy.
Waste collection is done by Devon Contract Waste who have a zero to landfill policy, which helps divert in excess of 35,000 tonnes per annum away from landfill. Compare this to Council operated waste collections where 100% of commercial waste goes to landfill or incineration.
We have reduced chemical consumption by 55% over the last 5 years and use granular for accuracy, as opposed to liquid which has considerable 'wind drift'
In spring 2022 we installed waterless urinals with an estimated saving of 100,000 litres of water per annum.
All lighting is now LED or halogen incandescent. We also have passive infrared sensors (PIR) in high traffic areas ensuring only the necessary lighting is used. This cuts conventional lighting by as much as 50%.
In October 2022 the Club will introduce a total ban on plastic tees.
The Club is actively engaged in renewable energy such as solar, wind and ground source.
Signed up to the GEO Foundation.
Active member of Bigbury Net Zero.

There is a long wish list to make the Club as environmentally and bio-diverse as possible...we will keep ‘chugging’ through this wish list to ensure Bigbury is one of the leading environmental golf clubs in the South West.