Environmental group invites Trump to attend court case over fencing at Doonbeg

Donald Trump has been urged to stay on in Ireland until May 15th, when the Trump International Golf Links & Hotel is due in the Irish High Court.

Friends of the Irish Environment [FIE], who brought an action against sand trap fencing constructed by the Trumps during 2022, say they’ve issued the invitation today as Donald Trump arrives in Ireland.

FIE says that ‘Climate change with more intense and frequent storms is accelerating coastal erosion at Trump’s famous golf course.

“It threatens the dune-top greens and tees which requires the golf course to shift further inland, not construct barriers to natural evolution.

According to FIE, the legally binding Conservation Objectives for the dune system require that the owners ‘maintain the natural circulation of sediment and organic matter, without any physical obstructions’.

‘Sand dunes are living dynamic systems; golf courses must adjust, not the other way around.’

A proposed ‘Irish Wall’ of limestone boulders supported by metal piles driven into the beach was refused planning permission in 2020 after a campaign that sparked world-wide interest with more than 100,000 signatures on a petition supported by the Californian environmental organisation, Save the Waves.

The Irish planning appeals board An Bord Pleanala refused the application for the construction, citing the ‘adverse effects on the physical structure, functionality, and sediment supply’.

However, during the summer of 2022, Mr. Lowes explained, ‘the Trump organisation constructed a fence at the base of the dunes made of large wooden pallets set deeply into the ground side by side with a fine nylon mesh stretched across them.’

The new fencing was removed after Clare County Council issued a Warning Letter and the environmental charity brought a case under Section 160 of the Planning Acts over unauthorised development.

However, FIE says a network of these fences remains along the top of the dunes.

Director Tony Lowes said the group has written today to Donald Trump at Doonbeg suggesting that he stay on in Ireland and attend the Court case, which is due in the High Court on 15 May.

According to the invitation, ‘would be an opportunity for you to learn about the concerns of environmental groups and the importance of conservation’.