The maintenance crew at Heatherwoode have been dealing with recurrent flood problems and an increasingly severe erosion and deposition from Clear Creek which runs through the course. Over the years, some portions of the creek had filled with sediment, and as a result, flooding began to occur more frequently. These flooding and erosion problems are very cumbersome to the Heatherwoode staff. These problems can cause significant downtime and the diverting of staff away from other critical course maintenance activities. At times is can also jeopardize golfers safety and well-being.
8th Grade Science teacher Mr. Guinther has partnered with Heatherwoode Golf Club, the City of Springboro, and the Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District to create a project based learning activity. On Tuesday May 1, Mr. Guinther’s students were put into groups and assigned a different location along the creek.They walked to 3 different locations along the course to observe areas experiencing erosion problems. There groups will then create a fictitious company that will present bids to fix the different areas. They will present their proposals, including a “cost effective” and “long-term” solutions, to golf course and city employees.
The Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District has loaned the class their 6 ft long stream table for the project. This allows the students to practice their solutions on a small scale before they are presented. Giving the students first hand experience of the erosion problems and the ability to witness their solutions really helps the students with this real life situation. The students will be addressing cost, possible course closure, environmental concerns, aesthetics, and possible future problems when creating their proposals.