1. Industry Reaction to the Drought: Is Turf Getting A Bum Rap? Mike Huck mhuck@cox.net Irrigation and Turfgrass Services San Juan Capistrano, CA Urban Water Institute - February 11, 2016

2. Benefits of NATURAL TURF Protects topsoil from water and wind erosion Improves air quality (dust reduction) Captures & cleanses urban runoff – Organic layer & root zone are rich in microbial activity that filter & biodegrade impurities & pollutants Carbon sink Reduces Stress – Improves Physical Health (Athletic Fields / Golf Courses) Restores damaged land areas (e.g. former landfill or mining sites) Cooler environment than bare soil or artificial turf. Provides substantial economic contributions to the community. Discourages pests (e.g. ticks and mosquitoes)

3. Unintended Consequences of Turf Removal & Turf Alternatives?

4. Crumb Rubber Controversy "I kept asking people, 'Don't you guys think it's weird?' Does someone think it's weird that all these goalkeepers have cancer... and there are only one or two per team?" Griffin said. "I don't ever remember even hearing the word 'lymphoma' 10 years ago. In 2014, the list was 38 players long,,,, Griffin's list of athletes with cancer who have played on synthetic turf now stands at 200 athletes, 158 of whom are soccer players. Of those soccer players, 101 are goalkeepers. Eighty of the athletes on Griffin's list have some form of lymphoma. Dr. David Brown, a public health toxicologist who spent over a decade working at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told me, "You should never get more lymphomas than leukemias. Leukemias are the most prevalent cancer in that [younger] group, and [Amy's list] has more lymphomas... her ratios are upside down." When I asked Brown what that signaled to him, his response was, "It signals that there's a chemical involved."

5. Does turf “waste” water? Plant Water Use Factors – Weeping Willow: H – Red Maple M to H – Roses: M – Cotoneaster L to M – Acacia VL to L Data from WUCOLS – http://ucanr.edu/sites/WUCOLS / http://ucanr.edu/sites/WUCOLS / Landscape Plant Factors – H 0.7 to 0.9 – M 0.4 to 0.6 – L 0.1 to 0.3 – VL <0.1 Turf Crop Coefficient – Cool Season Turf 0.8 – Warm Season Turf 0.6

6. Monthly Vs Annual Turf Crop Coefficients MonthCST (UCR) Irvine 1989 WST (UCR) Irvine 1989 “Overseed” (UC Bold) 1989 Overseed (UA) Tucson Revised Feb 2014 Jan.61.55.61.78 Feb.64.54.64.79 Mar.76.77.76.86 Apr1.04.721.04.89 May.95.79.95.85 Jun.88.68.88.78 Jul.94.71.78 Aug.86.71.82 Sep.74.62.83 Oct.75.54.75.83 Nov.69.58.69.83 Dec.60.55.60.80 Annual Average.80.60.75.82

7. Optimal IrrigationDeficit Irrigation Warm season Common bermudagrass 6040 Hybrid bermudagrass6040 St. Augustinegrass6040 Seashore paspalum6040 Zoysiagrass6040 Buffalograss6040 Kikuyugrass6040 Cool Season Tall fescue8060 Perennial ryegrass8060 Kentucky bluegrass8060 Fineleaf fescues8060 Creeping bentgrass8060 Rough bluegrass8060 Turf Crop Coefficients (WUCOLS)

8. People & Poor Irrigation Systems Waste Water NOT TURF! Management – Deep infrequent schedules Stack ET, not daily apps. Must understand soil WHC – Tolerance of a few brown spots Brown is the new green? – Wetting Agents New Technologies – “Smart” Controllers Complicated to program Understand soil WHC – High uniformity nozzles – Subsurface Drip Irrigation High DU, no wind losses Need understanding of soils to design & install – Soil Moisture Sensing The future?