Mr Lee Marshallsay has been at Eton for a number years, serving now as Grounds Manager. Kindly, he agreed to an interview, in which was discussed what the Grounds Department are doing in the way of sustainability, the challenges they face, what their future goals are, and more.
How do you ensure that the school grounds are managed in an environmentally sustainable way while maintaining their function and aesthetic appeal?
We have a big site to run, and we want to do everything as environmentally friendly as possible. So, in terms of machinery, we have started going down the battery route—blowers, trimmers, and hedge cutters, especially around gardens. In terms of our other machinery, we are looking into it—looking into what’s the best piece out there because it is evolving quite a lot, and a lot of the equipment, although there are some bits coming through now, isn’t going to last the test of time, effectively. For us, if we are buying equipment, we need to make sure that it is right for the needs of managing the department. We still operate with petrol and diesel machinery because there is no choice in that matter, especially at the moment. Things are developing on a technological front but until it is viable we can not commit to purchasing equipment that will not support us running the estate. That being said, whenever we do things now—for example, paint for marking pitches—instead of coming in 10-litre plastic bottles, it comes in 5-litre plastic bags, which are recyclable. That has also meant that we have saved on skips. We have saved on three 12-yard skips in the last year because we have not had 400 to 500 bottles of paint everywhere. The benefit of the plastic bags is that they are recyclable and go in the recyclable bins around the College, which is a benefit and a move that we have looked to do with suppliers. Around the site, we have even put wild flowering in certain places, such as South Meadow, Warr, and Carter. From Easter through the Summer term, it becomes a hay or grass meadow. Again, that’s a benefit because we are saving on fuel, manpower, etc across the site, and we can put that effort into other areas. Which is a change in operation on how we operate around the College. We are planting trees, whips, and putting in new hedgerows. Chemical use is very limited. I think we run in the most effective way with what we have to use.
So, following on from that, do you have any strategies in place to reduce water consumption?
We haven’t got many pitches that we can water, so you could argue there is that sort of advantage. Although we all need water—whether we are a human being or a plant—climate change has an impact on hot weather. What we do is only water where it is needed. For example, if we are going to water a pitch, we only water that pitch, not the surrounding areas. One thing we do have on the golf course is an instrument called a moisture meter, so we can plot that on the golf course. We take readings in the morning in the summer, anywhere from 8 to 12 readings on a golf green, which gives us a picture of what the moisture looks like. If needed, we hand water instead of watering the whole green. On Mespots 1 and 2, we’ve got soil scouts in the ground that measure moisture in the surface and manage temperature. That gives a gauge of how much water we need to apply and when. When growing a pitch, it will take a bit of water, but once the grass is up and the roots are searching for water, you can reduce water usage that way. Those sorts of machines and implements help us reduce water consumption by only applying it where needed.
You touched on not mowing South Meadow during the summer. How do you maintain biodiversity while also keeping the pitches and everything else in good condition?
One thing I think Eton has is a landscape strategy that was implemented before my time. It has been 10 to 12 years in the making. That’s why, when we have sports pitches, they are maintained for sports, but areas to the sides of pitches are left to grow at longer lengths for biodiversity purposes. That way, you get the best of both worlds. Especially in the summertime, when things are active, people see it in action. In the winter, when it has been cut down to a certain level, people think it looks a bit bare, but it is not. We have a process in place to help us achieve that.
Perhaps this is a more appropriate question for the Buildings Department, but are there any particular renewable energy or energy-efficient practices being used?
I would say no, probably because it is not out there. As mentioned, we haven’t got the battery-powered tractors that we would require, which would be a good energy saver. We are looking at more battery equipment, but, as I say, it needs to be right.
How do you manage the green waste that you have?
Any green waste we take, such as trees and grass clippings, goes to our green waste area on site at the bottom of Agars. That gets screened and shredded on a yearly basis, and any compost from that goes either into orders or beds around the college. Last year, we gave a load of it to a local farmer who took some and incorporated it into his fields with some organic compost. That was on our land as well, so nothing really leaves as such. One thing I would say is that composting is good—creating your own is good—but it is expensive to screen and shred.
What are some of the biggest challenges you face in maintaining the grounds and the sustainability of your practices?
I think that climate is our biggest issue. It has an impact. We are now getting heavier dumps of rain in one go. We are getting drier, longer summers, which creates complications. These are things we cannot control; we just have to control what is in front of us with the resources that we have.
Could you talk about some of the newer grounds management initiatives and how they might be more sustainable or environmentally friendly than previous practices?
The industry has lost a lot of chemicals, which is a positive. Most things that you can put on turf now are harmless for the environment, which is a benefit. There are various things that have changed over the years. Fine turf, like on the golf course, is difficult to manage, especially disease on golf greens. There are fewer fungicides to do that and the fungicides that we have are not as effective as they used to be, so we limit what we use. But at times, we almost have to give it an antibiotic to help it through the winter. So, it makes people go back to old practices. Years ago, there was a product to suppress worms—there isn’t now—so we have to brush surfaces more. We have to go back to the old ways of doing things effectively rather than relying on products, but that is not a bad thing. The important factor is doing things the right way, it is just that there used to be a way around it. So I think that it is a good thing that we are losing chemicals and products, but we need to be realistic and work on what we can achieve and what the impact of that is. Climate change also impacts on what we do and when we do it because different times of the year present different challenges. We don’t do the same thing each day of the week or the same time every year because of the weather.
What advice would you give to other schools or institutions regarding grounds management and sustainable grounds management?
It is difficult to give advice; I can only speak about what we do here and what I have done at my other schools. Independent schools are similar, but their grounds, budgets, and team sizes differ. All I can say is to do the best you can with what you have. Don’t compare, and do things for the right reasons, not just because you have always done it that way.
Looking to the future, what are your goals for sustainability in grounds management in the coming years?
I would love us to invest in sports pitches where we can recycle the water and use it on other pitches. That could be a great improvement, especially as water is going to be a commodity in the future. In my time, it would be nice to see us trying to improve sports pitches while also making them more sustainable in terms of what goes in and what goes out.
I think that is it. Thank you very much!
