Activists Fill Golf Holes With Cement

Golf just became much more difficult at two courses in southern France—environmental activists plugged holes with cement, reports the BBC. A group known as Extinction Rebellion claimed responsibility, saying it makes no sense that golf courses get an exemption from watering amid a severe drought. The activists say the exemption shows that "economic madness takes precedence over ecological reason," and they further denounce golf as a "leisure industry for the most privileged," per ABC Australia.

• In defense: Ordinary households are barred from watering their lawns or washing their cars, but while courses have to use less water than normal, no outright ban is in place for them. "A golf course without a green is like an ice rink without ice," says Gerard Rougier of the French Golf Federation, adding that 15,000 jobs would be at risk around the nation should courses wither.
• Activists mocked: Meanwhile, a post at The Golf Business in the UK notes that the activists are being roundly mocked for one aspect of the protest. "Do they know how much water it takes to make cement?" asks one of the online barbs rounded up by the outlet.

(More France stories.)