Conceived by King Leopold II at the end of the 19th century, Royal Ostend Golf Club in Belgium is steeped in the traditions of the game. So when it began a programme to return the course to its traditional links roots, under the watchful eye of Belgian environmental authorities, the team brought in bunker experts EcoBunker to help meet the challenge.
“We’re going through a programme returning Royal Ostend to a traditional links course, but that poses some serious challenges,” commented Iain Wakeman, Head Greenkeeper at Royal Ostend. “The Belgian government introduced an ecology programme to its coastal areas in 2019 that covers the use of fertilisers and pesticides, the consumption of resources and a host of measures to preserve the natural environment. The resources needed to build traditionally revetted bunkers wouldn’t fit with the ecology program, and that’s before considering the cost of materials and the ongoing maintenance needs.”
Having previously worked with EcoBunker on a 30 bunker project in Ireland, Wakeman understood the long-term environmental and cost benefits of introducing synthetic bunker technology. Royal Ostend had previously started a programme of work with EcoBunker, so when Wakeman arrived he invited the team to progress plans to re-build the course bunkers in a manner that fitted with the area’s ecological needs.
“People do ask what is ‘Eco’ about synthetic turf, without realising the resources we save when we use synthetic turf technology,” said Richard Allen, inventor of EcoBunker’s synthetic turf technology. “All of our EcoBunker tiles are sourced from recycled astro pitches, and when we install them, they are guaranteed to last over 20 years. Over that period we are saving on a minimum of four bunker re-builds with all the turf and resources that takes, plus the water, pesticides and man hours that go in to maintaining traditionally revetted bunkers. You build an EcoBunker once and it is essentially maintenance free.”
“It takes a lot to be judged as environmentally acceptable in this part of Belgium, but EcoBunker passed the test with flying colours,” added Wakeman. “Royal Ostend is a fantastic club with very high standards so it’s important that we have professional people on site who understand golf and can work with the natural environment.
“The team from EcoBunker were incredibly professional, not only in their approach to the work, but also in understanding how the bunkers flow with the land and making small changes to the shaping where it was needed. We’ve had 14 bunkers completed and I look forward to having the team back as we head towards our goal of a traditional links and a full complement of beautifully revetted bunkers.”