UM attacks another season of weeds with herbicide

The University of Montana has over 200 acres of grass turf, including the golf course and Dornblaser Field. Maintainence requires weeding, mowing and lots of water. But the Native American Center is switching course, and it may lead to more change on campus.

President Dennison has mandated that all new buildings must have the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification. LEED requires a building to score positively in areas of energy consumption, resource materials, water consumption and connectivity with the community.

"LEED requires that we reduce irrigation water consumption by at least 50 percent," said Jameel Chaudrie, UM architect and designer of the Native American Center. "The only way you can actually really do that is by going to native grasses and going with drip system irrigation."

The areas around the Natural Sciences Building have native vegetation, but such areas are not common on campus. Chaudrie said the Native American Center wanted a landscaping theme that was more local and with shrubs and grasses that provide real value.

"That's the idea also, is that you don't need to fertilize the plants," Chaudrie said. "You don't need to use harsh chemicals on them and thereby pollute the environment and the aquifer by using pesticides and herbicides."

The usual routine is for main campus groundskeepers to spray over a three-week period beginning after graduation, according to groundskeeper manager Rich Chaffee. In pairs, workers try to do the job quickly using golf carts. The worker doing the spraying aims for broadleaf weeds like dandelion and clover, and they shoot Roundup in the cracks, Chaffee said.

During his six years on the job, Chaffee said he and his crew have never had a major spill, which is five gallons or more. University officials could not provide exact figures on the amount of pesticides sprayed across campus lawns each year.

Residents of University Villages should be aware that workers will apply herbicides to selected areas around living areas this spring and summer. Craighead, Sisson, Elliot, Toole and Lewis and Clark villages have been sprayed once, but are scheduled for another spray.

Ron Brunell, Director of Residence Life, said crews are careful to spot spray for weeds instead of dusting large swaths. 

Chaffee's crew also spreads fertilizer in the spring, summer and fall. The University of Montana Greenhouse Gas Inventory report shows that 274,000 pounds of synthetic fertilizer were used on the UM main campus, Bandy Ranch, the University Golf Course and Dornblaser Field between 2000 and 2007.

Some colleges use alternatives to chemicals and have improved the quality of vegetation and campus appearance. According to a New York Times article, Harvard's landscaping services now employ university-made organic compost and compost tea to fertilize their lawns instead of traditional petroleum-based nitrogen fertilizers. Groundskeepers said switching to organic fertilizers reduced their water consumption by 30 percent and the health of their grass eliminates the need for herbicides.

Cherie Peacock, sustainability coordinator for the new Office of Sustainability, said she's listened to suggestions of alternative methods of sustainable landscaping, but she hasn't received any project applications. 

"I think it's a topic that would be good to discuss across campus just to have an open discussion to learn what we are doing," Peacock said.

Peacock said UM has used alternative methods with the Native American Center landscaping, and there may be possibilities for comparable designs in the future.

"I think it's a piece of a bigger question, which is green turf in general and what all does it take to maintain that," Peacock said.

neil.larubbio@umontana.edu