PFAS Use in Golf Course Management
Golf courses use various turf management products to maintain playing surfaces — herbicides, pesticides, fertilizers, and turf enhancement products, some of which historically contained PFAS as surfactants or active ingredients. Aqueous film-forming foam was also used at some golf courses for irrigation purposes. PFAS-containing pesticide formulations were used on turf to improve spreading and penetration.
Stormwater runoff from golf course fairways and greens carries turf management chemicals — including any PFAS present — to surface water and through infiltration to groundwater. Properties downgradient of golf courses in areas with shallow water tables and sandy soils may have groundwater PFAS contamination attributable to decades of turf management product applications.
Evidence and Testing Guidance
Several studies of groundwater near golf courses have detected PFAS at concentrations suggesting golf course sources, though distinguishing golf course contributions from other land uses in golf course-adjacent areas is methodologically challenging. Private well owners near golf courses — particularly those downhill from courses in areas with high rainfall and sandy soil — should consider PFAS testing as part of routine well maintenance.
Testing should use EPA Method 533, which detects short-chain PFAS compounds more commonly used in modern turf products following phase-out of long-chain PFAS. The PFAS profile in golf course-adjacent groundwater may differ from contamination near military or industrial sources, with higher proportions of certain short-chain sulfonamides and carboxylates.
Remediation and Alternative Filtration
If PFAS are detected in private wells near golf courses, the same filtration options apply as for any PFAS-contaminated well: reverse osmosis for comprehensive protection, or activated carbon with ion exchange for broad-spectrum PFAS removal including short-chain compounds.
Golf course operators should review historical records of turf management products used, consult with state environmental regulators about monitoring requirements, and work with neighboring property owners to address contamination concerns. Transitioning to PFAS-free turf management products — now increasingly available through precision agriculture suppliers — prevents future PFAS applications while maintaining course quality.