When something goes awry at Maui’s 18-hole municipal golf course, players complain to Art Rego in the pro shop.

Over three days in May, Rego said he was bombarded by grievances over an odor so foul that some players walked off the course. 

The source of the stench? Organic fertilizer. 

The odor emanated from the putting green, where the county Department of Parks and Recreation has been testing organic fertilizer and herbicide alternatives to the chemical-based products that have historically been used in public lands management. 

“They’re not happy,” said Rego, who’s worked at the county-owned Waiehu Municipal Golf Course for more than 30 years. “Some guys said they had a headache. Some have mentioned even that they might go to another course.”

On Friday, the Maui County Council will consider a bill to repeal the county’s three-year-old organic pesticide and fertilizer ordinance in its entirety.

Driven by community concern over perceived negative health impacts of synthetic pesticide use on fields where children play and where runoff makes its way to nearshore waters teeming with marine wildlife, the council passed the 2021 legislation unanimously.

Council Chairwoman Alice Lee, who sponsored the bill that would repeal the relatively new ordinance, said she voted in favor of the 2021 law that prohibits the use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers on county property, including parks, sidewalks and golf courses. But after fielding hundreds of complaints from fellow golfers she said the issue begs to be reconsidered.

“I’ve heard not just from people who are just upset, but they’re angry,” said Lee, who golfs weekly at the municipal course, where she encountered the unpleasant smell first-hand last month. 

“We have thousands of golfers who play there every month and this might well affect the attendance,” she said. “To lose that income for the county is not something we want to do. At the same time this is not something I believe will be resolved overnight, but I always want a robust discussion to look at two sides of an issue.”

The golf course will seek an exemption from the 2021 synthetic pesticide and fertilizer ban, according to Rego. The 2021 bill gave Waiehu Golf Course three years to implement the transition to organic products.

He noted that the county already cut down on its use of chemical fertilizers and herbicides at the coastal golf course several years ago when it renovated the green, replacing Bermuda grass with a salt-tolerant variety. This change in 2019 has allowed the county to reduce herbicide application on the fairways to twice a year, according to Rego.

The push to regrass the greens at Waiehu was partly triggered by years of multimillion-dollar financial losses. The golf course’s poor fiscal performance prompted former Mayor Alan Arakawa in 2017 to call for Waiehu to be shuttered in his State of the County address.

The county is also trying to boost revenues with higher green fees and no-show fees. Other recent improvements include new restrooms and an online reservation system.

“The worst part is the golf course is in the best shape it’s ever been in,” Rego said. “But we know with the organic fertilizer, I’m pretty definite, we cannot maintain the course like it is today going forward. We know it’s not going to work as well, and I don’t think there’s any other golf course on Maui that has to follow these rules.”

Parks and Recreation Deputy Director Shane Dudoit did not return requests for comment Thursday.

Civil Beat’s coverage of Maui County is supported in part by grants from the Nuestro Futuro Foundation.