Scots want to “trip up” Donald Trump’s new golf course

Donald Trump isn’t known as America’s sweetheart. He lives large, whether it be traveling on his private jet or running his mouth to any media outlet within ear shot. The golf loving tycoon may have met his match in a group called “Tripping Up Trump” that wants to stop the construction of his massive golf course in Scotland.

Trump began his quest to build the golf course back in 2006 and settled on the Menie Estate in Scotland. The area is home to a lush countryside and the Menie Dunes that border the North Sea. According to the Times, the development would feature an “18-hole course, a clubhouse, driving range, practice area, 450-bedroom hotel, 950 holiday apartments, 36 golf villas and 500 residential homes.”

The Trump International Golf Links, Scotland (TIGS) would bring jobs to the area but many questioned its environmental impact. Foveran Links makes up part of the dunes and is one of Scottish National Heritage’s “Site of Special Scientific Interest” (SSSI) which is a special designation for areas of wildlife or geology.

The Scottish Wildlife Trust noted that the North Sea winds created a special environment within the dunes to study plant life. TIGS would not only gobble up 40% of the Foveran Links, it would send the wrong message about similar sites under SSSI protection. As usual, Trump got the government to approve the purchase of the protected Menie Dunes.

Trump was also able to buy much of the land needed for the TIGS through individual sales of farms and homes. However, there are a few residents that refuse to move. These holdouts may prompt Trump to ask the government to launch a process known as “compulsory purchase,” which is similar to eminent domain in the US.

The laws state that the government can force you from your property for the good of the people. This happens a lot with the construction of highways and schools, not £750 million ($1 billion) golf meccas.

Coupled with the environmental factors that the TIGS would create, citizens decided to fight back against the billionaire. They created “Tripping Up Trump” to preserve the countryside and keep families in their homes.

The group shares the same views as the Scottish Wildlife Trust and claim that the TIGS would harm rare birds in the area and that the “natural landscape will become a groomed lawn covered in pesticides and fertilizers.”

Tripping Up Trump hit back at the mogul with something he knows a lot about, namely real estate law. One holdout, farmer Michael Forbes, opened up a section of his property to joint ownership. The more people holding a right to the parcel creates a legal nightmare for the government and TIGS to find a legal way to acquire the land.

More than sixty residents that include a member of the Scottish Parliament and a noted ecologist have signed up to be a part owners. The area is ironically called “The Bunker,” which is also the term for a hazard or “sand trap” in golf.

Trump keeps reminding us that his drive to build the TIGS is based in part on his mother’s Scottish heritage. Maybe he hasn’t seen the poll that found that 74% of the country wish he’d just abandon his quest.