Scots take swing at Trump golf course
● Donald Trump’s controversial Aberdeenshire golf course has destroyed the sanddune system on which it was partly built and the area no longer warrants special scientific protection, Scotland’s environmental watchdog said on Friday.
The announcement by Scottish Natural Heritage, denounced by the Trump International course as a “politically motivated” disgrace, is the latest in a long series of run-ins between Trump and authorities in Scotland.
Before becoming US president, the then property developer repeatedly insisted that the course at the Menie estate north of Aberdeen would improve the local environment.
But Scottish Natural Heritage and environmentalists warned that construction of the golf course would threaten central features of the area that had led it to be designated a site of special scientific interest.
The watchdog said on Friday that it was beginning a formal three-month consultation on removing the area’s designation, an unusual move that reflected the impact of the course.
“We have found there is no longer a reason to protect the dunes at Menie as they do not include enough of the special, natural features for which they were designated,” said Sally Thomas, director of people and nature at Scottish Natural Heritage.
Building the course involved hand-planting millions of sprigs of marram grass to fix the previously shifting dunes, a process that Trump International staff have said will effectively preserve them. But Scottish Natural Heritage said such planting had “destroyed the dynamic nature of the site and the cycle of habitat creation which is necessary for periodic renewal of sensitive habitats”.
The course had also converted semi-natural habitats to golf infrastructure such as tracks, tees, fairways, greens and water features, it said.
Sarah Malone, executive vice-president at the Trump International development, said it had not been informed of the plans to remove the site’s designation before it was announced to the media. “This is an utter disgrace and shows ... how politically motivated this decision is.”
Malone said the watchdog had shown little interest in the site before Trump invested in it, that Trump International had spent millions on care and protection of the designated area that it owned, and that other landowners faced no similar scrutiny.
“All this government agency wants to do is score political points and undermine that investment, custodianship and environmental management,” said Malone.
Trump previously enjoyed warm relations with Scotland’s governing Scottish National party, and the Scottish government approved the Menie course over local objections.
But the course owners have been accused of a heavy-handed approach to local residents who refused to sell their properties. Trump later fell out with then SNP leader and Scotland’s first minister Alex Salmond over plans for a nearby offshore wind farm.
Development at the Menie course has been more limited than Trump promised, but Trump International has applied for permission to build 550 houses at the site.
Scottish Natural Heritage’s announcement is likely to focus renewed attention on proposals for a new links golf course to be built at Embo in northern Sutherland, a scheme that environmental groups say threatens habitats for rare and endangered plants and birds. — © The Financial Times
Course owners accused of heavy-handed approach to local residents