The Mid-Atlantic Sports Turf Managers Association (MASTMA) is proud to announce the development of a critical Best Management Practices (BMP) manual. This research-based document is being developed specifically for the Sports Turf Manager and will integrate science based best practices in the areas of integrated pest management utilizing federal and local nutrient and pesticide regulations; protecting natural resources; and most importantly protecting the athletes and community who utilize the fields. The BMP manual will afford turf professionals the opportunity to be recognized as professionals and environmental stewards.
Fundraising efforts were launched during the first quarter of 2019 and the MASTMA Board of Directors successfully hit the initial goal of $15,000 and is now able to move forward with hiring Kingsbury Consulting to begin the manual. To date, major donors include Bayer, the Maryland Turfgrass Council (MTC), Turf Equipment and Supply Company, the Sports Turf Managers Association Chapter of Illinois, and Finch Services, Inc.
MASTMA member Patrick Coakley, CSFM, said, “By reaching our first plateau for the BMP project makes this real now; it is no longer just an idea. This is now going to happen. Pen hits paper and the document is being built. I think this will give us the momentum we need to finish out the fundraising portion and get this done.”
Kingsbury Consulting has successfully completed BMPs in several other states prior to beginning the Mid-Atlantic BMP. Kingsbury Consulting’s Principal, Stacey Kingsbury, holds a master’s degree in environmental management from Yale University, and has expertise in water quality, environmental management and strategic communication.
MASTMA President Jeremy Driscoll states, “The BMP being produced for the Mid-Atlantic Sports Turf Managers Association will be a tool that can be used by anyone in the Sports Turf Industry. It will not only provide the most productive, technical and safest methods of performing day to day operations, it will be a guideline for advancing the essential mandatory routine care of athletic fields to provide the best playing surfaces possible. It will also serve as a voice to government legislators, public individuals, and anyone who stands to listen and understand that those performing these tasks on sports fields are educated, trained, and licensed in the proper usage of equipment, pesticide applications and other areas of expertise.”
MASTMA plans on using the Mid-Atlantic BMP as a template that other locations are able to share and replicate. Coakley adds, “The long-term goal for the BMP project is to make a universal sports turf template to be used by all local STMA chapters nationwide.”
For more info please contact Melissa Dornan, MASTMA Executive Director, 202.617.0447, Melissa.L.Dornan@gmail.com