GolfBiodivers: 4 universities and 64 golf courses study biodiversity

GolfBiodivers is the name of the large-scale research project in which the potential ecosystem services of golf courses are to be examined for the first time on a national level in Germany. The biodiversity on a total of 64 golf courses is being investigated in two phases with the support of the Universities of Freiburg, Münster, Kiel and TU Munich. The scientific research program, which is probably unique in Europe in the golf sector in this size, is funded with a total of 2.6 million euros by the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation.

Project over six years

“There’s a lot of work behind it at the national level,” commented Klaus Kobold, president of the German Golf Association, on the project, for which German golf facilities can still apply until February 3. “The results of the individual studies should serve as a model for other golf facilities and be implemented on a broad scale,” Kobold said at a press conference at the CMT in Stuttgart. At the same time, he points out that German golf is thus emphatically documenting that, with regard to the biodiversity crisis, it is “part of the solution and not the problem.”

The GolfBiodivers project will run for a total of six years and is designed as a before-and-after study. Regular monitoring will be conducted on the selected areas of each golf course to determine the development of biodiversity over this period. The 64 golf courses selected for the project will receive financial support. Costs for the establishment and maintenance of flower strips, forest edges and shrubs are reimbursed.