Say NO to a golf course at Coul Links | Scottish Wildlife Trust

Coul Links in East Sutherland is under serious threat from a golf course development.

This beautiful, wild stretch of coastline is an important habitat for rare and endangered plants and animals. It’s so important for wildlife that it has three distinct levels of protection and was previously managed by the Trust as a wildlife reserve.

A detailed public inquiry regarding Coul Links will begin on Tuesday 26 February and last for several weeks. Experts including our Chief Executive Jonny Hughes will give evidence on the serious harm that will be done to an internationally important wild place. Scottish Ministers will then make a final decision on the fate of Coul Links.

Thanks for your support

Almost 13,000 people signed up to our joint e-action that aimed to ask Scottish Ministers to call-in the plans for a golf course at Coul Links.

On Friday 24 August Planning Minister Kevin Stewart agreed that the proposal raises issues of national importance in relation to natural heritage and needs further scrutiny. A public inquiry into the development will begin on 26 February 2019.

What’s the problem?

This site is important for nature. Part of the proposed golf course is within the Loch Fleet Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), and the Dornoch Firth and Loch Fleet Special Protection Area.

This area is designated partly because of its fragile network of sand dunes and the birds that shelter on lochans between the ridges. The dunes at Coul Links are particularly unusual because they form a complete undisturbed system from foredune to slacks.

The site is noted for important protected birds including terns, geese and waders, and a rich variety of plants. SSSIs are special sites that are designated as protected areas for good reason, and this protected status must be maintained.

Find out more on our FAQs page.

Along with several other conservation charities, we are challenging the proposals to build an 18-hole golf course on the site. Here are just a few of the reasons why…

Grass of Parnassus ©Mark Foxwell — Grass of Parnassus at Coul Links © Mark Foxwell

What have we done about it?

In line with our policy on the planning system the Trust has objected to this proposal due to the negative impact that it will cause to a number of important protected areas.

You can read our full objection to the development here, as well as our objection to a separate application for a reservoir on the site.

At the beginning of June, we sent a joint letter to the First Minister expressing our concern that the Highland Council had deferred their decision on the development.

We have also written to the Ramsar secretariat expressing our concern about the impact on internationally-designated wetland habitats.

Share your memories of Coul Links

If you have any memories or photographs of the wildlife and landscape of Coul Links, you can help us demonstrate the beauty and importance of this remote coastal area by sharing them with the Trust.

Please send your images and stories to rsyme@scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk