Westwood Resident Wins Environmental Stewardship Award

Westwood resident and Zoning Board member Matthew Ceplo was recently picked by the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) Board of Directors as the winner of their 2013 President's Award for Environmental Stewardship, according to a post on the group's website.

Ceplo is the superintendent of the golf course at the Rockland Country Club in Sparkill, N.Y. and a 27-year member of the GCSAA. He is certified by the Audubon International's cooperative sanctuary program for golf courses, a member of the Audubon Steward Network, vice president of the Tri-State Turf Research Foundation and chairman of the Rockland County Water Quality Committee.

"GCSAA is fortunate to have member superintendents like Matt who are wonderful environmental stewards at their courses," GCSAA President Sandy G. Queen said.

He has previously been awarded several other environmental honors, including the Metropolitan Golf Association's 2012 Arthur P. Weber Environmental Leader in Golf Award and the Global Sports Alliance's 2011 New York Environmental Steward Award.

Ceplo has also worked with Girl Scouts to tag Monarch Butterflies as part of Monarch Watch, a University of Kansas program which tracks the migration habits of the butterflies.

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