KOHLER ANDRAE STATE PARK AND THE ADJACENT KOHLER COMPANY LAND ARE THE SAME ECOSYSTEM SHARING THE SAME ECOLOGICALLY SIGNIFICANT NATURAL ELEMENTS THAT DEFINE THIS LAKESHORE.

MIGRATORY BIRD STOPOVER AREA

This area is recognized by the Wisconsin Stopover Initiative for providing critical nesting, wintering, and stopover habitats to birds traveling Lake Michigan’s migratory routes.

ENDANGERED AND THREATENED WILDLIFE

Several endangered and threatened species of wildlife call this unique environment home, including the: Hairy-necked Tiger Beetle, Piping Plover, and Red Shouldered Hawk.

ENDANGERED AND THREATENED PLANTS

Many types of flora found in this area such as the Pitcher's Thistle, Dune Goldenrod, Thickspike, Prairie Dunewort, Common Moonwort, Sand Reedgrass, Clustered Bloomrape and Slender Bog Arrow-Grass have already been classified as endangered or threatened.

RARE WETLAND AND DUNE STRUCTURES

Developed over thousands of years, this area features rare interdunal ridge and swale wetlands. There are only 10 known examples of these in the state of Wisconsin. Additionally, this rare gem is the only ridge and swale wetland in Wisconsin that exist in a forest setting.

PROTECTING LAKE MICHIGAN AS A FRESH WATER SOURCE

The reconstruction of the topography will alter the hydrology. Functional wetlands will be impacted. Agricultural runoff will be exacerbated picking up golf course pesticides and fertilizers flowing into the groundwater and Lake Michigan.

THE LAND

Besides including old growth forest the land has been described by Pat Trochell, former wetland specialist. Testimony during FBRF contested case hearing on the wetland permit issued to Kohler Company:

“While some of the property has been altered by invasive species and a pine plantation, the area in general is relatively undisturbed and undeveloped areas with upland plant communities including Great Lakes beach, Great Lakes dune, northern dry-mesic forest and northern mesic forest. Wetland communities include hardwood swamp/floodplain forest, southern sedge meadow and alder thicket. Great Lakes ridge and swale complex is a wetland upland complex found between the Black River and Lake Michigan. Interdunal wetlands are also present on both properties.

Great Lakes beach, Great Lakes dune and Great Lakes ridge and swale communities are ranked by the state as S2, meaning they are imperiled in Wisconsin due to the rarity of the plant community (6-20 occurrences or few remaining individuals or acres) and because they are vulnerable to extirpation from the state. Interdunal wetlands are considered critically imperiled inWisconsin (five or fewer occurrences or very few remaining individuals or acres) and globally because of extreme rarity (6 to 20 occurrences or few remaining individuals or acres) and/ or factor(s) making them very vulnerable to extinction throughout its range. Great Lakes dune and beach communities are also ranked as S2 communities. “

NATIVE AMERICAN BURIAL SITES

Archeological reports through 2018 indicate that the Kohler land is home to 7 Native American Mounds. One archaeological study recovered 25,186 prehistoric artifacts on the property. These artifacts speak to the presence of a continuous 10 mile stretch of Native American villages with the state park and Kohler lands at the southern end of the habitation. In 2017, further excavations unearthed human remains identified as being of the Woodland tradition. As of today these remains have not been repatriated.

What the DNR says about Kohler Andrae State Park

The most extensive Great Lakes dune and beach complexes on the Wisconsin side of Lake Michigan are at Kohler-Andrae State Park and Point Beach State Forest. Great Lakes dunes and beaches are both globally rare, highly threatened natural communities. In addition, rare plants and animals are dependent on these communities, and several of them are endemic to the Great Lakes shores.

Great Lakes Dunes support many habitat specialists, including globally rare regional endemics, and co-occur with other dynamic and rare natural communities such as beaches, barrens, coastal wetlands, and xeric forests. They are integral and irreplaceable parts of the Great Lakes shorelines with uniqueand irreplaceable properties and warrant the strongest protections we can give them.

DNR website

Named for John Michael Kohler and Terry Andrae state parks, Kohler-Andrae is the home of majestic sand dunes, miles of golden beach, shimmering blue Lake Michigan water, whispering pines, an abundance of wildlife and recreational activities. Kohler-Andrae State Park is one of the last natural preserves along the Lake Michigan shore and is open for everyone to explore and enjoy. DNR site

Ozaukee Press Editorial - Nature wins a round of golf

"The DNR’s granting of the permit was so contrary to scientific evaluation of the threat to the environment of an extremely sensitive area of ridge and swale wetlands that it fed accusations that the decision was politically motivated." "The land... ...is home to a system of wetlands and sand dunes that is so rare it is said there are few places like it in the world. The habitat it creates is so valuable to endangered animal and plant species that it is protected by state and federal law." ~ The Ozaukee Press is Wisconsin's largest paid circulation community weekly

The land is just a few miles north of Ozaukee County along a pristine stretch of the Lake Michigan shore.

It is home to a system of wetlands and sand dunes that is so rare it is said there are few places like it in the world.

The habitat it creates is so valuable to endangered animal and plant species that it is protected by state and federal law.

Even so, destroying the wetlands, grading the dunes, reconfiguring the landscape with imported dirt and planting and chemically fertilizing exotic grasses to create a luxury golf course is perfectly acceptable.

Incredibly, that is what the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources said in granting a permit in January 2018 to allow development of the 247-acre golf course planned by the Kohler Co. to proceed.

That bizarre decision may forever remain an embarrassing footnote on the record of the agency that is charged with protecting Wisconsin’s natural resources, but at least, if a judge’s ruling issued March 15 is upheld, it will not enable a precious piece of nature to be sacrificed for human profit and pride.

Administrative Law Judge Mark F. Kaiser chastised the DNR for accepting Kohler’s assurances that it would come up with a plan that would protect the land, water, wildlife and plants from the golf course’s impact, determined that the development threatened significant environmental damage and declared the permit invalid.

The DNR’s granting of the permit was so contrary to scientific evaluation of the threat to the environment of an extremely sensitive area of ridge and swale wetlands that it fed accusations that the decision was politically motivated.

Critics noted Herbert V. Kohler Jr., chairman of the Kohler Co., and other company executives were large donors to the campaigns of Gov. Scott Walker, who had authority over the DNR when the decision was made.

In any case, testimony in the exhaustive five-day hearing held by Judge Kaiser added powerfully to the impression that granting the permit was at minimum badly out of sync with science.

Pat Trochlell, a wetlands expert recently retired from the DNR, testified that the Kohler golf course was the most environmentally harmful of any project she reviewed in her 37-year career at the state agency.

The DNR’s own environmental impact statement was damning as well, using such terms as “very rare” and “imperiled” and concluding that the wetlands nurture “threatened and endangered species habitat.”

In his ruling, the judge noted that besides damaging the fragile complex of shoreline dunes and wetlands, the golf course plan calls for cutting down as much as 120 acres of forest that hasn’t been logged for a century and a half.

The judge’s decision was based on science, which was entirely proper. But another standard could be applied to the golf course issue by answering this question: How does it benefit society to exchange precious elements of untouched nature for a vanity project justified more by the fame and bragging rights that would come with it than by need?

A golf aficionado with a billionaire’s deep pockets, Herbert Kohler can already claim credit for the development of two nationally recognized golf courses in Sheboygan County, Blackwolf Run and Whistling Straits. The latter has hosted three PGA championships and will be the site of the 2020 Ryder Cup.

What is to be gained from having a third exclusive course? A consultant hired by Kohler claims the new course would generate more than $20 million a year in economic activity.

This state and the continent around it are replete with natural areas beautiful enough to generate vast sums of money as recreational venues, but they are off limits because their environmental assets are priceless and irreplaceable. And so should the proposed site for the third Kohler golf course.

Until the March 15 ruling, the foes of the project, chiefly a grass-roots organization called Friends of the Black River Forest, had been fighting a losing battle. It’s far from over—Kohler’s push has been relentless.

But dare we hope that, with a new secretary appointed by a new governor, the Department of Natural Resources will become an ally in the defense of the precious natural resources along the Sheboygan County shore that cannot coexist with a golf course?

Water concerns in a time of freshwater scarcity

Golf courses high water consumption for irrigation and maintenance is a significant environmental concern, especially with the impacts of climate change bringing long periods of drought.

1. High Water Consumption:

Irrigation Needs: Golf courses require a large amount of water to maintain the green lawns, fairways, and other turf areas, leading to significant water consumption.
Water Usage Estimates: A typical 18-hole golf course can use millions of gallons of water annually, which is comparable to the water usage of thousands of homes.
Example: In California, an average 18-hole golf course uses almost 90 million gallons of water per year, enough to fill 136 Olympic-size swimming pools.

2. Environmental Impacts:

Water Scarcity: In arid and semi-arid regions, the high water demand of golf courses can exacerbate water scarcity issues and put a strain on local water resources.
Water Quality: Runoff from golf courses can contain fertilizers, pesticides, and other chemicals that can contaminate water sources and harm aquatic ecosystems.
Eutrophication: Ponds and water hazards on golf courses can become susceptible to eutrophication, a process that leads to algal blooms, oxygen depletion, and the death of aquatic life.