The Donald and the Dunes

excellent work, Rob. well crafted, compelling. you're on your way to a fabulous career in film making.
one question: is there any chance you could persuade Mr. Trump to build his golf course in Kazakhstan?

This film is great for taking a look at the multiple sides of an issue that affects many different places in the world. Great job getting a variety of interviews and well researched.

Super film guys.
Thanks ... and best wishes for all our futures
Debra Storr

What's great about this pod is that it tells the story from BOTH sides - it's a familiar story, worldwide and I think you guys have done a great job!

Donald Trump's assumption that Balmedie and Aberdeen will benefit from this project is sadly mistaken.

1. House prices in and around Balmedie will rise, so much so that people from this area will more than likely not be able to afford to live there.

2. Irrigation of the greens will use up a great amount of water. This will be subterranean water, extracted from the land causing further problems with soil quality. This is before adding the effects of 950 families spending summer here and 500 new families moving to this area.

3. Pesticides used to keep the green looking nice shall contaminate coastal water, soil and harm local plant/insect species.

4. Animals will simply not be moved from here then put in another part of the coast. The idea of building 2 golf courses, a hotel + housing for workers, 950 HOLIDAY homes, and 500 permanent homes £££!!! will put a tremendous pressure not only on the ENVIRONMENT, but SOCIETY!
The effects of such construction, hydraulic use, and human waste on this part of the coast will cause a butterfly effect for miles around.

5. SSS1, there is a reason why it is protected. The dunes PROTECT our shore line! This is NECESSARY!

6. All over the world we can see POLITICAL figures giving into business men with deep pockets and lots of MONEY! These corrupt dealings should not be happening between an American tycoon and a First Minister that wants to ensure a better future for SCOTLAND. Is this what his INDEPENDENCE is? The people have no say?
Come on Alex, would you do this to Peterhead?

The list goes on...

An important thing to remember, whether economically successful, the money will not be passed to the people from the area. The money will go into the deep pockets of rich business men that WON'T be living in ANY of these HOUSES and therefore, shall not suffer the effects!

This will not help the community in the long run. What they are proposing will increase the price of housing and living, put a great pressure on the society around this project and environment! The jobs they talk of will more than likely be part/time...

Don't let the fact that he is spending lots of money on this project divert you from the fact that he and his representatives do not care about us, they want money money money.

This is a fab piece of short film that demonstrates what happens when a community is split over an issue. Locals in Aberdeenshire won't see the money - this is a piece of wishful thinking by local folk who would like some money in their pockets and twist their minds into such a belief. But when are we going to learn that not everything should be for sale? What's wrong with keeping our heritage and demanding that our land use is appropriate? After all, once it's gone, it's gone. The question we have to ask ourselves is whether we really want our country to be turned, bit by bit, into a dustbin for the rich to play with for a while and then discard at their leisure. But by the way, I have no problem with the basic concept of a golf course - just don't ruin our dunes to do it. Rob's right - we can have our cake and eat it - others would elsewhere - it just requires a bit of guts to do it. I doubt that Sorial, Trump and co would allow us to build such a thing in their backyard, so what gives them the right?

Jollywood comment- plain weird. Not the best idea to create a stir by commenting on something you know nothing about.

I'm also not interested in hearing arguments about people spending money locally which will help our small businesses. Nonsense. We all know that already small businesses in communities across the world, struggle to survive due to large global organisations..... Like attracts like...... the more money being spent anywhere in the world, the more attraction to big fat greedy parasites waiting to get a juicy piece of pie - like bees to a honey pot. Local business doesn't stand a chance! Think the stuffing has been knocked out of that old argument!!

Thank goodness that the number of people who care about the fragile ecology of this planet are greater than those who are either just plain ignorant or worse still, those who are aware but put their own selfish needs first - the latter are the ones who make us think that we need to justify our right to be! Greed is very ugly.

This is a great documentary which tells things as they really are. Thanks guys! Good effort.

Great to see people and representatives standing up for their heritage. And there is more to loose than to gain:
1- the environmental consequences will be disastrous. Wildlife will be changed forever. Will the wildlife move? They'll need to build a sewage with bigger capacity or just dump it into the ocean. That's a lot of toxic chemicals. Where will the wildlife move?
2- economically, sure, the golf and businesses will pay taxes, although there is plenty of incentives that will reduce or delay the tax benefits. As for local businesses, there will be very little. Housing for workers mean very little jobs creation for the locals. Guests will have everything on site, and beside a couple of visits to the local pubs, very little will be spent. Local mushrooms? If it's cheaper to buy them in Poland, the golf will probably buy them over there as well.
3- socially. it'll be as disturbing as it will be for the wildlife. can't imagine a smooth cohabitation.

this is an absolute disgrace, how Trump can have the gall to errect an abomination such as a multi storey hotel in nationally protected land is terrible. fair enough the golf course as it's widely accepted that they can manage and encourage wildlife on their grounds, but to says that there is no compromise in building over the SSSI dunes is simply ignorant and stubborn. if he had any respect for his Scotish heritage he wouldn't have even have proposed the plans.

Jollywood; human beings are a great scourge on this planet and you should think twice about what you're saying. by looking at what we have done to so many of the beautiful places in this world, how can you even begin to think we deserve to do as we like. precious places need to be saved and encouraged to flourish, wildlife shouldn't be moved, we should adapt ourselves around it.

i'm in no way saying that a golf course would greatly benefit such a community, but at what price? people that don't care will say how much the course will do for that town, but the simple fact is that one con, namely the destruction of natural habitats, will outweigh ALL of the pros.

Respect to all protesters, keeps on with your efforts, hopefully these people will realise their mistake

jollywood, if it raises property values, it raises the land and property taxes, which the locals cannot afford, even if businesses boom.

THis documentary is great, thanks Eagle. Jollywood you're failing to consider the fact that Donald Trumps 1bn hotel AND housing development will only be available to those with large amounts of money to spend on leisure, the whole community in the area will be flooded with tourists whose aim is to consume their environment and gaze at their social and natural landscape; as for a great percentage of profits going to the US, i dont see how you see this as unproblematic, the whole economic infrastructure of the area will be offset- add to this the fact that the structures built (and the people they house) will produce ENORMOUS amounts of waste in an area of enormous natural beauty... Going ahead and materializing 'tourist fantasies' for the sake of feeding a need for experiencial novelty has its price. The world is not as tom cruise wishes (and hopefully it will never be): a "playground" for those who can afford it.

I dont think having The Trump Org. build on the dunes is a bad thing. The wildelife wouldn't be killed, it would just be moved. Human's take precedence over ALL animals, regardless of where they reside, one can't deny that.

As one of the men says "...all of the profits will go back to New York." is just wrong. Its true that most of the profits will probably come back to the U.S. but not without being properly taxed by local and federal governments in the EU. The people that will move into the million dollar homes will spend locally, the fact that such a resort is present in the community will raise property values, and the overall economic conditions in the area (which looked a little bleak) will rise as well. I'm for animals and preserving them, but to say this golf course's cons outweigh the pros is just wrong.