1. At Arbutus Ridge Golf Club, Being a Green Employer is Par for
the Course
Arbutus Ridge Golf Club in Cobble Hill, British Columbia, has been making its verdant
course and state-of-the-art clubhouse considerably greener since June 2008. It was
then that the club announced several key programs, including the formation of a
Greening Committee, becoming one of the few golf courses in Canada officially to
measure its carbon footprint and to work toward certification in Environmental
Planning from the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for Golf Courses.
It has taken time and effort, but today, the Audubon certification is almost
a reality. Meanwhile, the club’s Greening Committee continues to reduce
that carbon footprint, making staff members at all levels feel proud to be
working for a company that genuinely cares about the environment.
“We have to look at any new project here at Arbutus Ridge in several
ways,” says Jason Lowe, general manager for Arbutus Ridge, which is
located between Duncan and Victoria, one of eight courses owned and
operated by the GolfBC Group. “We have to see how it fits into the future
of the golf course, and we have to prioritize and look at the costs. We
recently spent $5,000 to upgrade our indoor fluorescent lights. Most of the
rest of the lights are already compact fluorescents. We’re just a few
months away from being fully certified by Audubon. That will be a great
accomplishment.”
Trying to keep the business as green as possible is definitely a priority for
everyone at Arbutus Ridge. Rachel Sullivan, a server at the club’s Satellite Bar and Grille, is the chair of the
Greening Committee, which has representatives from every department at the club.
“We consider everything, from small to big things, that could have an impact,” says Sullivan. “For example,
we just decided to get rid of all plastic pencils and go back to using wooden pencils. We grow some of our own
herbs, and we buy locally grown produce whenever we can. We turn off all lights and TVs in empty rooms, and
even the tennis bubble powers off when no one is using it. Every little thing helps. And when those efforts are
multiplied every day by every person, it grows into bigger savings.”
The golf club announces its environmental accomplishments through media releases and in-house meetings
and social media, and Sullivan says these green efforts make Arbutus Ridge a place where people with a social
conscience want to work. “We’re known for our green attitude,” she says. “Preserve and protect is our motto.
Our environmental attitude is brought up by people during job interviews, and everybody thinks what the
Jason Lowe
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2. greening committee accomplishes and its future goals are really great. I know it caught my eye when I was
looking for a good place to work.”
Such considerations as donating the kitchen’s used cooking oil to the Cowichan Bio-
Diesel Co-operative and clearly identifying recycling bins are all part of the club’s green
attitude, says Sullivan.
Lowe agrees that greening the company is “motivational, both for current employees
and people wanting to work here. We’ve had a couple of people who wrote on their
applications: ‘I have seen what you did and that is why I applied here'.” He says the
turnover rate at Arbutus Ridge is considerably less than it used to be, and he credits
the club’s green attitude for some of this result. “We used to have way more turnover
at the management and front-line levels,” he says. “As of two years ago, our retention
rate was 60 per cent. That compares with anecdotal evidence from other clubs of 40 to
50 per cent.
“Financially, our revenues have been more stable than many other facilities, and the green competitive
advantage can only help this scenario," he concludes. "Progressive environmental policies have long-term
financial benefit as well, and we try to measure our business performance on the triple bottom line rather than
just a financial pillar. It's more holistic and long-term thinking. Those policies certainly help with motivation
and retention at all levels.”
Rachel Sullivan
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