Waste Management’s sponsored PGA tour event will join a first-of-its kind water sustainability campaign that supports water flow restoration projects in Northern Arizona’s Verde River and throughout the Colorado River Basin.

As one of the state’s largest perennial rivers, the Verde River feeds into the canals that provide water to the Greater Phoenix metropolitan area.

By joining the Change the Course campaign, the title sponsor of the Waste Management Phoenix Open aims to help millions of people learn how their actions affect global water issues and change water-use behavior. Using social media, the Waste Management Phoenix Open encourages PGA tournament attendees and followers to pledge to conserve water. One pledge equates to restoring 1,000 gallons of water back into the Colorado River Basin.

Engagement efforts also include: a microsite that gathers pledges and has a freshwater footprint calculator and educational information on global freshwater issues; a text code “WMPO” (text WMPO to 77177); and a Change the Course activation booth within the Expo of the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

Other Waste Management water conservation efforts at the tournament include the use of greywater — wastewater generated from the concessionaire’s kitchens — which is then recycled for use in tournament Port-O-Let restrooms. Additionally, Waste Management works closely with vendors to monitor their use of water throughout the week to decrease overall consumption. In 2014, Waste Management also purchased BEF Water Restoration Certificates for the more than 95,000 gallons of fresh water consumed during the tournament.

Earlier this year, Waste Management announced that the Waste Management Phoenix Open has, for the second consecutive year, diverted 100 percent of waste away from landfills amid a record attendance of 563,008 fans.