Post 7 - Waste water reuse at Märkischer Golfclub Potsdam

We are turning an ambitious science project into a real life solution!

This year I had the pleasure to start consulting Märkischer Golfclub in Potsdam (MGCP). The owner Martin Westphal is not your typical owner but a former teaching pro, who worked in golf course construction. Martin was confronted with a water ban at his Golfclub in 2022 (Figure 1), which resulted in drought-related issues.

Figure 1, Aerial image of MGCP in 2022

To continue managing his golfcourse Martin had to look for an alternative water source and joined a government-founded project (PU2R). He invested in a scientific set-up to help investigate if water from a water treatment plant nearby could be reused to irrigate his golf course. Treated wastewater is usually channeled into rivers, and gets lost in the sea. He constructed a water retention basin and installed an underground lab, placed suction plates at different soil depths, and built test fields above lysimeters (Figure 2).

Figure 2, Scientific in-field set-up at MGCP including a water retention basin, an underground laboratory, suction plates, and lysimeters

The field test site helps us test the water quality of reused water. We are testing the water before it is applied to the test plots, while it moves/filters through the soil profile, and at the bottom when it enters groundwater levels. In most southern EU countries and Sweden, water reuse is permitted, while in Germany it is partially allowed in some regions. A new EU regulation was recently put in place and it seems that water reuse is a hot topic in the coming years.

Figure 3, EU countries and their water reuse status in green (permitted), yellow (status pending), turquoise (partly allowed), purple (not allowed)

Martin and I are working on a strategy to help more golf courses in Germany to reuse water. So get in touch, maybe we can help. We are also considering renting out the test site in 2024 to various companies so they can test the residuals of products in the soil profile and at the groundwater level (Figure 4).

Figure 4, Test site at Märkischer Golfclub with four test fields

The next step at MGCP is to optimize the delivery of water (irrigation system) to the playing surfaces, now that we have solved the water availability issue. This year (Figure 5) the course certainly looks different compared to 2022 as shown in Figure 1. We are thriving for low-input management and always try to improve every aspect of course maintenance, without compromising playing quality.

Figure 5, Märkischer Golfclub aerial view 2023