1000 saplings planted on Carnoustie course

By Alistair July 30, 2023 07:59

The 1000th sapling has been planted into the ground on the Buddon Course at Carnoustie Golf Links.

In 2018 Carnoustie Golf Links began working with Seagreen, a joint venture project between SSE Renewables and TotalEnergies, on a development that will provide Scotland, and the wider UK, with critical green infrastructure and will become Scotland’s largest and the world’s deepest offshore wind farm, helping to meet Scotland’s net-zero targets and tackle climate change.

Part of this project required Carnoustie to fell or transplant 200 trees from the route along the new cables. In agreement with Angus Council, Carnoustie Golf Links was required to re-plant one tree for every tree that was felled. The links then went one step further, not only committing to replacing all trees felled, but to plant a total of 1,000 new trees across the courses.

Craig Boath, head of sustainability at Carnoustie Golf Links, said: “We are dedicated to contributing to the natural environment of our courses. With an abundance of wildlife calling the links ‘home’, we want to make sure that we both protect what we already have and enhance the eco-system for the future. Although there were a few delays on the way, the Seagreen Project felt a very natural opportunity to combine with and deliver our own planting project.”

The new trees at the links will offset approximately 1,610 tonnes of carbon over their lifetime of roughly 40 years, helping the links on its way to achieving its ambition of becoming a carbon net zero organisation.

Michael Wells, chief executive of Carnoustie Golf Links, said: “Carnoustie Golf Links is dedicated to doing the right thing for our local community and the natural habitats that surround us.

“We took a big step this year in appointing the new role of head of sustainability, a position focused on ensuring that we are doing all that we can to protect and enhance our environment.

“This tree planting project is one that the whole team have got behind, with many of our staff helping in the planting efforts and leaving a small but significant legacy on the links.”