Golf course plans in doubt as NatureScot report backs…

PLANS to build a golf course on a protected Highland beach face being binned after a government agency report concluded with an “outright rejection”, the Sunday National can reveal.

The final decision on proposals for an 18-hole course at Coul Links – a dune system near Embo in Sutherland – will be taken by SNP ministers after they “called in” the plans following approval from Highland Council last year.

Coul Links is a triple-protected site, forming part of the Loch Fleet Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), the Dornoch Firth and Loch Fleet Special Protection Area (SPA), and the Dornoch Firth and Loch Fleet Ramsar site – meaning it is protected under the 1971 international Convention on Wetlands.

Last month, consideration of the plans was put “on hold” after the Scottish Government published a new policy stepping up protections for Ramsar sites, including by mandating a Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) for any developments affecting one.

The new policy states: “If the HRA concludes that adverse impact on integrity [of notified natural features] would take place, the application would not be supported … unless there are Imperative Reasons of Over-riding Public Interest.”

NatureScot, a Scottish Government agency, has now conducted a “shadow HRA”, which concludes that the development would “undermine” conservation objectives. 

It also found that assessments have “not demonstrated that there will not be an adverse effect” on the integrity of the sand dunes or the population of Baltic rush (a type of plant).

File photo of the dune system at Coul Links (Image: Getty) The report states that, following a scientific appraisal, there is “likely significant effect and probable adverse effect on integrity”, adding: “Development management response type: outright objection”.

The findings mean that SNP ministers would have to believe there is an “Imperative Reason of Over-riding Public Interest” in order to let the golf course development go ahead.

Ariane Burgess, a Green MSP for the Highlands and Islands, said NatureScot’s shadow HRA was a “really important analysis”.

“It should mark the end of the saga and a rejection of this totally inappropriate and destructive development,” she added.

The Conservation Coalition – a group of charities arguing against the development which includes National Trust for Scotland, RSPB Scotland, and the Scottish Wildlife Trust – welcomed NatureScot’s “comprehensive” work and undertaking of a shadow HRA.

The charities added: “We note that the appropriate assessment could not conclude that there will not be an adverse effect on the integrity of the site for sand dune and Baltic Rush, resulting in an outright objection.”

However, Communities for Coul (C4C), a locally led group lobbying for US billionaire Mike Keiser to be allowed to build the course, dismissed NatureScot’s report as “based on their highly contested approach to impact on sand dunes”.

“The suggestion that Scottish ministers cannot now approve the Coul Links development without going against their own policy is not correct,” a spokesperson said. “NatureScot’s shadow HRA is based on their highly contested approach to impact on sand dunes.

“It is entirely possible that the reporters will find in C4C’s favour after assessing the evidence presented and then a different assessment would be undertaken with, we hope, a different outcome.

“However, should Scottish ministers rule against the development, that decision would fly in the face of several Scottish Government policies with which many elements of the Coul Links project are aligned, including the National Strategy for Economic Transformation. 

“The proposed development is also closely aligned with the Community Wealth Building (Scotland) Bill currently going through Parliament.”

Burgess (above), however, said that the developers’ proposals “fall badly short in terms of our efforts to protect our planet and improve our biodiversity”.

“Coul Links sand dunes are very rare habitats, with a variety of vegetation and species dependent on them for their survival,” she said.

“East Sutherland is already well served by high-quality golf courses. Coul Links must be protected by the Scottish Government, and marked safe from these destructive plans for yet another private golf course. 

“We must not prioritise profits over public use of these beautiful spaces that are becoming few and far between in our country.”

A petition calling on the Scottish Government to block the golf course development has passed 25,000 signatures.

It is not the first time that proposals to build at Coul Links have been considered by SNP ministers. Initial plans, spearheaded by American entrepreneur Todd Warnock, were blocked in February 2020 after ministers ruled that the proposals would have “significant” impacts on nature.

C4C have since publicly led on revised plans they claim will be net-positive for the Ramsar site, and contribute between 270-400 full-time jobs and £8-12 million per year to the economy.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “As this is a live planning application it would not be appropriate to comment.

“The decision will be announced in due course.”