Description
Beginning in 2008, environmental groups demanded that San Francisco close the Sharp Park Golf Course, claiming that course maintenance operations were harming a frog species listed as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act. The golf club rallied its members to the cause. Juanita Mercado, a club member and a geologist, found herself conflicted between a love for golf and a concern over the game’s effect on the environment. Using the analytical skills she had as a trained scientist, she identified a third solution for the Sharp Park situation. The solution had a track record. For years, it had been in place 10 miles away at the Crystal Springs Golf Course located in Burlingame, CA. The facility was within the critical habitat of the frog species, and, for more than a decade, a certified wildlife sanctuary. The story continues today. Its eventual outcome can affect existing golf courses.
