Actually, there are 15 holes in 15 trees that provide possible nesting sites for the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker at Pinehurst No. 2, site of the 1999 U.S. Open.
The Pinehurst agreement represents a success story in the protection of endangered species, illustrating that landowners can reap economic benefits from their lands while simultaneously protecting endangered species.
It all started in 1995, when Pinehurst teamed up with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Environmental Defense Fund to protect habitat for up to 18 groups of these endangered birds and became a role model for golf courses and private landowners throughout the United States. This partnership illustrates that for some species of plants and animals, golf courses can play a significant role in the protection and restoration of rare, threatened, or endangered species.
In March, 1995, Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt used the backdrop of Pinehurst, near the village of Pinehurst, 71 miles south of Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill, North Carolina, to announce a new program, dubbed "Safe Harbor," to protect habitat for the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker in the North Carolina Sandhills. In July, 1995, Pinehurst was the first ever landowner to enter into a Safe Harbor agreement with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
U.S. Open spectators will see red-cockaded woodpecker nesting cavity trees, identified by a white rectangular sign featuring a drawing of the woodpecker that identifies the tree as an "Endangered Species Site."
The Pinehurst Safe Harbor Agreement led the way for 24 additional landowners in the North Carolina Sandhills, including nine golf courses, to enter into similar agreements. These landowners have protected nesting and foraging habitat for 50 groups of red-cockaded woodpeckers.
Interviews, photos & B-roll available:
Kimberly Erusha Tom MacKenzie
United States Golf Association U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(908) 234-2300 ext. 5498 (404) 679-7291Brad Kocher Lisa Swann
Pinehurst Environmental Defense Fund
(910) 295-6811 (202) 387-3500
Release #: R99-039
