Out of interest, how did Machrihanish Dunes get the go-ahead, how was it built and how does it operate now in relation to environmental matters?
atb
Ah, now you see this is the example I always cite when asked how golf development _should_ proceed on a sensitive site, in contrast to the Trump model.
MD was the first course in Scotland to be permitted on a SSSI, before Trump and before Coul, if it goes through.
It was granted planning consent for two principal reasons: firstly, that south Kintyre was economically very depressed following the withdrawal of the RAF from Machrihanish (it got a substantial slug of regional development aid for that reason too) and it was thus seen as an economic engine for the region; and secondly, because the developers signed up for an extremely long list of conditions, both environmental and economic, as part of the planning deal.
On the environmental side, those conditions basically precluded any movement of muck on the site, except for the construction of tees and greens. They specified that, where turf was lifted, it should be relaid in a particular location (I think facing in the same direction but could not swear to that), they meant that substantial parts of the site were totally off limits (this is why the course has always felt compromised from a routing pov) and they put a Scottish Natural Heritage representative on site essentially full time during construction to monitor compliance and deal with issues as they came up.
In economic terms, the developers were required to renovate and bring back into use two hotels, the Ugadale at Machrihanish, and the Royal in Campbeltown.
You will recall that, when the course opened, it was hit with a flurry of criticism from golf writers -- too much blindness, too long a walk, too much all round craziness. There was truth in these complaints, but they were also unfair -- those issues were built in by the planning constraints.
Over time, the initially frosty relationship between the course and SNH has improved as one side has realised that the other has no desire to rip up the property and build a Campbeltown Augusta, and the other side has come to understand the priorities of the environmentalists. As such, the course operators have been permitted to do quite a lot of work that had not been allowed in the first place -- a few greens have been built, walking paths have been constructed through some of the sensitive areas, etc. And the course has continued to be refined and improved. I really like it now. And the creation of a little 'resort village' in Machrihanish itself has made the area a vastly more attractive destination for travelling golfers.
In short, imo it is a case study of how to do it. Unfortunately, because a key part of that case study is 'quietly, step by step and with compromise' it doesn't get the attention that the 'my way or the highway' stuff at Balmedie does. As a reporter, I totally understand why. As a golfer who believes the game can be a force for good on many levels, I bitterly regret it.