Golf Club Montreux

Notable Observations

• Expanding Wildflower Areas The club is gradually increasing areas of wildflower meadow and other ecological rough across the course. Small meadows are cut only once each year, while other environmental areas are cut every couple of years, reducing intensive maintenance and allowing more natural vegetation to develop.
• Wildlife Habitat Features Around 40 bird boxes have been installed across the course with support from an external bird association. Stone piles and brush piles have also been created within environmental areas, alongside ponds, biotopes and extensive areas of mature trees.
• Caring for Mature Trees A large number of mature trees surround and separate the golf holes, forming an important part of the course landscape. The club works with an external tree specialist on major tree work and is progressively removing ivy where it is affecting older trees.
• Very Low Irrigation Use Water use on the golf course is kept very low, with irrigation generally limited to greens and tees during summer and fairways allowed to brown naturally. The fairways were not irrigated at all in the previous year, while weather conditions and soil-moisture measurements are used to guide irrigation scheduling.
• Lower-Input Course Maintenance Increasing wildflower areas reduces the amount of regular mowing required, while the maintenance fleet already includes four hybrid mowers. The club also operates six electric golf carts for players.
• Composting, Reuse and Plastic Reduction Green waste is composted and reused on the course, with some material also provided to local farmers for feed. Recycling bins around the course were built by a member carpenter, and the club does not provide plastic bottles to golfers.
• Golf Access and Junior Development The club collaborates with a private school whose pupils visit for golf lessons and receive free access to equipment. It also runs a junior programme linked with Swiss Golf and has a membership that includes many female and junior golfers.
• Charity and Inclusive Employment The club holds an annual charity tournament, with the previous year's event helping subsidise an ambulance in Madagascar, alongside a volunteer course-cleaning day for members and others. It also works with an employment agency that supports injured or disabled people in returning to the workforce.

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“The Golf Club Montreux is situated on a small piece of land where they try to include the maximum amount of hardrough and habitat features possible between golf holes, including patches of wildflowers and biotope, bird boxes and microhabitat structures. The greenkeeper is doing a good job managing the turfgrass and keeps irrigation consumption very low. The club has a number of projects on the go, including the construction of a new washing and filling station and a new building for carts and clubs. They also intend to completely renovate the clubhouse, which will greatly improve their energy efficiency in the future. I am looking forward to seeing the club develop other future projects for more targeted habitat management, resource efficiency, as well as communication on their sustainability commitments.”

David Billy (GEO accredited independent verifier)