04 - SURFACE WATER MANAGEMENT
Texas has 191,228 miles of streams, 15 major river basins, eight coastal basins, and 196 major reservoirs.
Conserving this natural resource and protecting water quality throughout the state is important for all Texans. Golf facilities can help protect waterbodies and improve surface water management through effective utilization of BMPs.
Golf courses are one link in the stormwater management chain. Stormwater that falls directly on the golf course property is supplemented by stormwater which enters from other areas, and a quantity of this water flows off the course to another area. By the very nature of water flows, golf courses are realistically capable of having a small impact on major stormwater flow. That impact should be to add only small increments of water over a given period of time; this function is referred to as “detention.”
During golf course design and construction, drainage capability is based on the average rainfall events local to the site. A typical golf course drainage system is designed to detain a two- or five-year rain event (i.e., is able to capture and manage the maximum rainfall event expected to happen over that period, based on past data). With such a system, when that rain event occurs, the golf course will be able to be reasonably drained in a matter of hours. The excess water not absorbed by the soil flows through the drainage system and is temporarily held before it finally leaves the property. In some cases, golf courses and other recreational facilities can be required to follow a design able to accommodate a 20-, 50- or 100-year rain event, which means the golf course must detain more water for perhaps a longer period of time.
All surface waters on golf courses should be managed to protect water quality and support aquatic wildlife habitats and plant species, while providing aesthetic and design features for the golf course. This is accomplished through a variety of BMPs, including incorporating natural systems for filtering to improve water quality, in addition to development of an aquatic plant management strategy for lakes, ponds, and streams located on the property.
Natural systems such as berms, swales, and buffers on a golf course can help filter pollutants from stormwater that enters the course in order to improve the quality of water leaving the property.
Regulatory Considerations
Across the state of Texas there nearly 11 million acre-feet of surface water is available for human use. There are nine major aquifers: Pecos Valley, Seymour, Edwards, Gulf Coast, Carrizo-Wilcox, Hueco-Mesilla Bolson, Edwards-Trinity, Ogallala, and Trinity. Texas receives approximately 366 million acre-feet of rain annually. Given a history of droughts and its growing population, conserving water is of critical importance for the state. All surface water in Texas is owned by the state, held in trust for the citizens of the state, and any proposed use of state water must be approved by the state through the TCEQ.
Applications for the use of state water are processed by the Water Availability Division of the TCEQ.
An uncontested application is typically processed in 300 days. Depending upon the request, an application may require one or more of the following during the Technical Review phase:
Hydrology Review
Environmental Review
Conservation Review
Dam Safety Review
Application forms and additional information:
https://www.tceq.texas.gov/permitting/water_rights/wr-permitting/wr_applications.html#process
https://www.tceq.texas.gov/assets/public/permitting/forms/10214a.pdf
Water Divisions are structured throughout the state, under Texas Water Code, a watermaster may be appointed to a Water Division to ensure compliance with water rights and coordinate diversions to prevent waste or excess use. In the Brazos, Concho, and Rio Grande River basins, watermasters allocate water between users and ensure compliance with water rights. Before diverting Texas state water, a declaration of intent must be made and approved by the watermaster of the Water Division. A water use report must be submitted to TCEQ for water rights by March 1 each year.
TCEQ Water Use Report Form
https://www.tceq.texas.gov/assets/public/permitting/forms/wur_instructions.pdf
The TCEQ regularly monitors the condition of the state’s surface waters and assesses the status of water quality every two years. This assessment is submitted to the EPA and is published as the Texas Water Quality Inventory and 303(d) List of impaired waters.
Construction activities are regulated by the TCEQ to minimize contamination of water sources through the TPDES, which was established by the EPA; under provisions of Section 402 of the CWA and Chapter 26 of TWC. If the golf course is under the jurisdiction of a TPDES MS4 permit, the course should check with the permit holder if the course does not have its own SWPPP.
Additional information:
https://www.tceq.texas.gov/permitting/stormwater/construction
https://texaswater.tamu.edu/stormwater/regulations.html
https://www.tceq.texas.gov/waterquality/tmdl/nav/tmdlsegments
https://www.tceq.texas.gov/waterquality/assessment/305_303.html
Definition of State Water: Texas Water Code (TWC) § 11.021
The water of the ordinary flow, underflow, and tides of every flowing river, natural stream, and lake, and every bay or arm of the Gulf of Mexico, and the storm water, floodwater, and rainwater of every river, natural stream, canyon, ravine, depression, and watershed in the state is property of the state.
The Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) provides water planning and data collection to support the development of regional water plans covering 16 regions, which are incorporated into a state water plan for the conservation and management of the state’s water resources. The TWDB also supports the development of regional flood plans, which are incorporated into a state flood plan.
Regional Water Planning Groups:
https://www.twdb.texas.gov/waterplanning/rwp/regions/index.asp
TWDB Regional Water Planning Rules & Statutes
https://www.twdb.texas.gov/waterplanning/rwp/rules/index.asp
Additional regulatory agencies which may be involved in surface water and/or stormwater management, environmental flows, floodplain management, water planning, and analysis based on jurisdiction, waterbodies, location, and legislation include the TPDW, TDA, GLO, and TSSWCB.
Texas Golf Industry BMP Guide Section references for additional regulatory considerations:
Irrigation: water use and reporting requirements.
Water Quality Monitoring and Management: water quality regulations, regional and local administrative structure, TMDLs.
Planning, Design, and Construction: stormwater and wastewater permitting during construction.
Best Management Practices
• Adhere to federal, state, and local water management and water quality regulations.
• Golf courses must complete and submit annual water use reporting to the TCEQ annually.
• Consult federal, state, and local water management agencies, and/or consult an approved management plan before performing construction activities, irrigation installation, integrated pest management, fertilization, or aquatic plant management.
• The disposal of sediments from surface water ponds (stormwater detention) may be subject to regulation.
• Studies of water supplies are needed for irrigation systems, including studies of waterbodies or flows on, near, and under the property to properly design a course’s stormwater system and water features to protect water resources.
• Golf course owners are responsible for adhering to TMDLs, mitigation, and WPPs; determine if waterbodies are identified as impaired and whether or not a TMDL exists; if impaired, additional BMPs may be necessary; consult with an experienced water quality professional regarding TMDL alternative plans.
• Wetlands are protected areas; consult with federal, state, and municipal agencies before altering natural aquatic areas.
• Use a meter at each source of water withdrawal. At least once per year, prior to the start of the irrigation season, calibrate meters in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations.
• Metering of the sources should be at the discharge side of the source pumps prior to any off-take piping.
• Choose a meter that provides both a numeric cumulative volume reading and an instantaneous flow reading. This will enable the user to gauge consumption and obtain an estimation of the flow rate.
For additional regulatory considerations reference the following BMP sections: Planning, Design, and Construction; Water Quality Monitoring and Management; Irrigation; Nutrient Management, Integrated Pest Management; and Pesticide Management.
Stormwater Capture
A proper golf course design allows for rain and runoff captured in water hazards and stormwater ponds to provide most or all of the supplemental water necessary for irrigation. Backup sources may be required for drought conditions. Stormwater capture allows natural systems to filter and improve water quality and is desirable where the lowest quality of water is needed. This helps to conserve potable water and maintain hydrologic balance.
Wherever possible ponds should be constructed in a series of ‘train’ to support treatment of stormwater runoff. Through this design the first pond will catch the “first flush”, the second will provide additional filtering and the third will filter and serve as a primary withdrawal pond for irrigation; infiltrating the first inch of stormwater helps to prevent water quality impacts.
Best Management Practices
The course site plan should maintain the natural wetland and watercourse systems and buffers, plus locate necessary stormwater management structures to upland areas. This helps maintain the natural drainage patterns and allows for recharge of runoff.
A series or train of stormwater diversions, swales, and basins can be designed to collect stormwater runoff for use in supplementing irrigation.
Install berms (a planted dirt mound or a log covered with soil and organic matter) and swales (trenches) to capture pollutants and sediments from runoff before these reach the irrigation storage pond.
A swale and berm system allows for resident time (ponding) for water to infiltrate through the root zone to reduce lateral water movement to the surface water body.
Stormwater runoff from parking lots, service areas, buildings and roadways should not be directly discharged into wetlands and watercourses. Control quality of surface runoff with appropriate filtration practices such as grassy swales, filter strips, and constructed wetlands.
Constructed wetlands (artificial wetland to treat greywater or stormwater runoff) should have an impervious bottom to prevent groundwater contamination.
Where seepage is discovered through pond water level monitoring, line or seal the pond or install pumps to relocate water.
Water-intake systems that use horizontal wells placed in the subsoil below the storage basin should be installed with a post pump to filter particulate matter.
Ensure the water management plan includes a secondary source of water as backup.
Inspect irrigation pumps, filtration systems, conveyances and control devices to prevent and correct system issues.
Irrigation systems should be computerized for remote monitoring and rapid shut down if needed. If a storm occurs during an irrigation cycle have the irrigation system designed to shut down automatically.
Additional stormwater information:
Reference Planning, Design, and Construction; Water Quality Monitoring & Management; Irrigation; Nutrient Management, IPM, Pesticide Management, and Landscape sections for additional BMPs.
Stormwater, Ponds, and Lakes
Stormwater is the conveying force behind nonpoint source pollution. Nonpoint pollution can be both manmade and natural, it comes from daily activity rather than a single outlet like a pipe from a factory or sewage treatment plant. Pollutants commonly found in stormwater include the microscopic wear products of brake linings and tires; oil; shingle particles washed off roofs; soap, dirt, and worn paint particles from car washing; leaves and grass clippings; pet and wildlife wastes; lawn, commercial, and agricultural fertilizers; and pesticides. Filtration is a key ecosystem service provided by golf courses. Most golf courses plan lakes and water hazards to function as part of the stormwater control and treatment system, however natural waters of the state must be protected and cannot be considered treatment systems.
Stormwater control on a golf course involves:
Controlling amount and rate of water leaving the course
Storing irrigation water
Enhancing wildlife habitat
Removing waterborne pollutants
Addressing aesthetic and playability concerns
Preventing flooding of facilities and play areas
Controlling erosion and sediment
Stormwater Treatment Train
Develop a stormwater pollution prevention plan (SWPPP), especially prior to initiating construction activities. Source control practices should limit or reduce potential pollutants at the source, which involves keeping a clean, orderly construction site. Erosion control barriers, such as silt fencing or sedimentation ponds, should be installed between ponds or streams and planned areas of turfgrass as a part of sedimentation control. The planned location of these erosion control measures should be shown in the erosion control plan and remain in place until turfgrass is matured.
Golf course stormwater management should include “soft engineering” approaches that promote the use of natural systems to filter water. The SWPPP should include establishing buffers and special management zones. Buffers should be planted with native species to provide water quality benefits, pleasing aesthetics, and habitat/ food sources for wildlife. Practices which may be included to prevent erosion can include ground covers – such as riprap, mulch or vegetation- and blankets which absorb raindrop impact, reducing erosion. Swales and ditches are also included in BMPs to prevent contact by diverting water around a site.
A common treatment train includes turfgrass swales on side slopes designed to filter and slow stormwater, the second car in the train includes a swale or main channel that directs stormwater to the last car, often a constructed wetland. Vegetated swales slow and infiltrate water, trapping pollutants in the soil to be destroyed naturally by soil organisms. Depressed landscape islands in parking lots can catch, filter, and infiltrate water, to reduce run off. During hard rains, an elevated stormwater drain inlet allows the island to hold the treatment volume and settle out sediments, while allowing the overflow to drain away.
Other options to control stormwater include directing the runoff from gutter and roof drains to permeable areas where water can infiltrate near the point of generation; incorporating sand and planted grass to separate brick or concrete pavers; and using special high-permeability concrete for cart paths or parking lots.
Example: Steps for Maintaining A Stormwater Treatment Train
Step 1: Establish Special Management Zones defined as areas that have distinct management practices that coincide with their position in the watershed and are based on analysis of resources and habitat protection requirements.
Step 2: Use a Natural Systems Engineering Approach to stormwater management that maximizes use of natural systems to treat water. Vegetative swales, storm water ponds, marshes and wetlands can serve as habitats for many creatures, including wetland birds and other waterfowl.
Step 3: Maximize Use of Pervious Pavements such as brick or concrete pavers separated by sand and planted with grass. Special high-permeability concrete is available for cart paths or parking lots.
Step 4: Establish BMP “Trains” for maximum environmental protection. The most effective way to protect surface water and groundwater is by using a comprehensive systems approach that includes integration of preventive practices and structural controls. Preventive measures include nonstructural practices that minimize or prevent the generation of runoff and contamination of runoff by pollutants; for example, using organic fertilizers. Structural controls are capital improvements designed to remove, filter, detain, or reroute potential contaminants carried in surface water.
Best Management Practices
Develop a SWPPP to establish source control practices, incorporating erosion and sedimentation control measures, and special management zones.
Organize course design to accommodate buffers and special management zones including swales and slight berms with a natural appearance where appropriate around the water’s edge.
Buffer strips can also be used to slow and subvert water and trap pollutants in the soil, where they can be naturally destroyed by soil organisms; try to utilize native species for buffers.
Use ground covers such as vegetation, riprap, mulch, and blankets to cover bare soil and help reduce erosion.
Sod, sprig, or reseed bare or thinning turfgrass areas.
Direct stormwater through vegetated filter strips (such as turfgrass) through a swale into a wet detention pond, and then out through another swale to a constructed wetland system.
Use depressed landscape islands in parking lots to catch, filter, and infiltrate water and preventing stormwater running directly off of these areas.
Direct pipe discharges, gutters, and roof runoff to permeable areas that allow the water to infiltrate near the point of generation.
Avoid use of impervious materials for walkways, install pervious surfaces such as brick or concrete pavers separated by sand and planted with grass.
Discharge or divert surface runoff onto wide, relatively flat vegetated areas to promote infiltration and ground water recharge.
Reduce frequency of mowing around lake edges and collect or direct clippings to upland areas where runoff and wind will not carry them back to the lake.
Reverse-grade around the perimeter to control surface water runoff into ponds and reduce nutrient loads.
The placement of bunkers and the shaping of contours surrounding a green should allow proper drainage and provide for the treatment and absorption of runoff from the green.
Reference the Planning, Design, and Construction section for additional stormwater BMPs.
Protecting Wetlands and Environmentally Sensitive Areas
Wetlands and riparian buffers can provide enduring pollutant removal support. Preserving these areas protects the water quality of streams, wetlands, lakes, anchialine pools, coastal zones, and reservoirs.
Appropriately sized and maintained buffer strips along streambanks provide protection for stream ecosystems and can prevent erosion as well as minimize release of sediment into stream channels. Levels of suspended solids have been shown to increase at a slower rate in stream channel sections with well-developed riparian vegetation.
Buffers around the shore of a waterbody, or other sensitive area, filter and purify runoff as it passes across the buffer. Vegetative conditions and practices in construction and maintenance of buffers should include:
Herbaceous composition of buffer strips (ideally, native species to provide filtering, habitat/food sources, and pleasing aesthetics)
Mow herbaceous cover of buffer strips twice per year
Remove cut material by hand
Reference Water Quality Monitoring and Management for additional BMPs and regulatory considerations regarding wetland protection.
Best Management PracticeS
Remove damage to existing landscape and ground cover conditions, including siltation, erosion, and compaction or trampling by golfers.
Amassed silts should be removed, eroded channels filled, and compacted areas raked.
Any repairs to buffers should be completed using hand tools only, unless a mechanical tool “arm” can reach into the wetland to perform a task.
Damaged groundcover vegetation should be restored by seeding or planting, depending on the vegetation damaged.
Channels which form within the filter strips should be filled and immediately reseeded.
Utilize grading to prevent reformation of the channel and to restore sheet flows.
Trash, golf balls, and other debris should be removed from buffers.
Designing an Aquatic Plant Management Strategy
Many aquatic ecosystems have been damaged by invasive and nuisance aquatic plant species. There are a variety of practices which may be employed to assist in restoring these aquatic ecosystems to health, including biological, mechanical, cultural, and chemical methods. An aquatic plant management strategy should address the intended uses of the waterbody to maintain water quality. Consider the site’s physical attributes and location, ecosystem, watershed, presence of invasive or weedy species, aesthetics, watershed and groundwater assessments, and other environmental considerations, in addition to cost-benefit perspectives to determine management strategies.
It is also important to consider aquatic plant (and wildlife) strategy when designing and constructing ponds. Ponds that are too shallow may reach high temperatures, leading to low oxygen levels and promoting algal growth and excess sedimentation. Try to encourage clumps of native emergent vegetation at the shoreline. Ponds featuring fringes with a narrow edge of vegetation are more resistant to problems than those with highly maintained turfgrass. Plant life growing on littoral shelves may help to protect receiving waters from pollutants present in surface water runoff, and a littoral shelf may be required in permitted surface water-retention ponds. Problem plants should be selectively controlled without damaging littoral shelves.
The use of aquatic plants to improve the appearance of a pond (aquascaping) may be incorporated as part of the overall landscape design. The use of native aquatic plants promotes biodiversity and can provide benefits for pest management. Consider consulting with a professional aquatic management consultant.
Filamentous algae are usually removed by hand, or algaecide can be applied using spot treatment. Regularly assess results of invasive weed control programs (including quantitative documentation of results from control strategies) and re-evaluate management options as part of a professional plant management strategy.
Phytoplankton, which give water its green appearance, provide the base for the food chain in ponds. Floating plants suppress phytoplankton because they absorb nutrients from the pond water and create shade. Tiny animals called zooplankton use phytoplankton as a food source. Large aquatic plants (aquatic macrophytes) can grow rooted to the bottom and supported by the water (submersed plants), rooted to the bottom or shoreline and extended above the water surface (immersed plants), rooted to the bottom with their leaves floating on the water surface (floating-leaved plants), or free-floating on the water surface (floating plants). Different types of aquatic macrophytes have different functions in ponds.
Lake Zones Diagram
Source: https://www.waterontheweb.org/under/lakeecology/10_biological_lakezones.html
Best Management Practices
Information on aquatic vegetation management in Texas, including regulations and best practice guidance is managed by TPWD: https://tpwd.texas.gov/landwater/water/environconcerns/nuisance_plants/
Consult with federal, state, and local water management agencies, and/or consult an approved management plan before performing cultural practices: fertilization, installation of plants, hand removal of plants, or mechanical harvesting.
The transport and possession of aquatic triploid grass carp, biological controls, aeration, and chemical controls (herbicide/algaecide) must be approved and monitored according to permit and licensing protocols and compliance. For information on triploid grass carp permitting reference: https://tpwd.texas.gov/landwater/water/habitats/private_water/gcarp_intro.phtml
Native emergent vegetation should be encouraged in clumps at the shoreline.
Ponds with narrow fringe of vegetation along the edge are more resistant to problems than those with highly maintained turfgrass.
Littoral zone slopes should ideally be around 1-foot vertical to 6-10 foot horizontal (6% to 10%) to provide the best substrate for aquatic plant growth.
Lake management plans should include strategies to control the growth of nuisance vegetation, which can damage a pond’s water quality and treatment capacity.
In ponds with littoral plantings, problem plants should be selectively controlled without damaging littoral shelves.
Spot-treat filamentous algae or frequently remove algae by hand to prevent lowering oxygen concentrations in water; consider working with a reputable pond manager to strategize best ways to address.
Where possible, allow plants such as arrowhead or pickerelweed to inhabit littoral zones to improve water quality. Beneficial aquatic plants can help filter nutrients and chemicals, stabilize shorelines, and provide important fish and wildlife habitat; consult with a professional aquatic management consultant for proper planning, permitting, and implementation.
To reduce the risk of oxygen depletion, use an algaecide containing hydrogen peroxide instead of one with copper or endothall.
Examples of Invasive and Native Aquatic Plants in Texas
Invasive Aquatic Plants
• Hydrilla
• Water hyacinth
• Giant Salvinia
Native Aquatic Plants
• Pickerelweed
• Arrowhead
• Water primrose
Additional information on invasive species and how to manage:
https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/species/exotic/index.phtml
Additional information on native and prohibited aquatic plants:
Water Quality Protection
To maintain and protect water quality and enhance endemic flora it is important to develop an aquatic/lake management plan which addresses all intended uses of the waterbody. This should include documentation of the site’s physical attributes and location including the presence of invasive or weedy species, aesthetics, watershed and groundwater assessments, and other environmental considerations. Only certified applicators acting under licensed operations, whether individuals or contractors, should be allowed to select and apply terrestrial and aquatic use-site pesticides.
Courses should also develop a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP). The SWPPP describes all construction site operator activities, including sediment and erosion control measures, to prevent stormwater contamination and ensure compliance with the requirements of the CWA.
Reference Planning, Design, and Construction; Water Quality Monitoring & Management; Irrigation; IPM and Pesticide Management sections for additional BMPs.
Floodplain Restoration
Reestablishment of natural water systems helps mitigate flooding and control stormwater and should be designed based on the latest research science available. High sediment and nutrient loads and vertical and lateral stream migration should be addresses where these are causing unstable banks, flooding, and reductions in groundwater recharge.
Best Management Practices
Use stream buffers to provide natural filtration, settling of overland flow and stabilization of banks.
Add buffers to play areas to maintain and restore natural areas that will attract wildlife species.
Install detention or floodwater retarding basins to store water and reduce flooding at peak flows.
Monitor streams, creeks and rivers for debris that may inhibit or slow water flow.
As early as possible, contact the local county (or city) floodplain manager to discuss operations and processes in the floodplain and for clarification related to local floodplain rules.
Additional information on Texas floodplain guidelines:https://www.twdb.texas.gov/flood/resources/doc/Texas_Quick_Guide.pdf
Human Health Concerns
Be sure to address areas where standing water may provide habitat for nuisance organisms.
The use of pesticides should be part of an overall IPM strategy that includes biological controls, cultural methods, pest monitoring, and other applicable practices.
Best Management Practices
Use IPM principles to address insects that may pose a hazard to human health.
Drain areas of standing water during wet seasons to reduce insect populations.
Use Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) products according to label directions to manage waterborne insect larvae.
Reference the Planning, Design, and Construction; Water Quality Monitoring and Management; Irrigation; Nutrient Management; Integrated Pest Management; and Pesticide Management sections for additional BMPs.
Ecosystem services that golf courses provide like stormwater filtration, reducing runoff, and mitigating flooding are especially critical in urban environments like Houston or Dallas-Fort Worth where greenspace is limited with office buildings, roads, sidewalks, and other impervious surfaces.
