I refer to A. Bonello’s letter regarding the proposed golf course at Xaghra il-Hamra (TMIS, 17 July).

Among many other things, he asserts that “the point we are all missing is that if it doesn’t work out then the land reverts to its original state, unlike an area where a tourist project is built and then left in an abandoned state or converted into flats”!

This statement reveals his complete lack of understanding of the basic concepts of ecology. To make a golf course, the pristine garigue at the proposed site will be irreversibly destroyed. Much of the flora, which takes years to grow, will be buried under imported soil, large tracts of the rocky terrain will be excavated and flattened in order to have the lush green garden lawns golfers dribble over. Club houses, toilets, restaurants and all the other luxury trappings will have to be built. To assert that the land can revert to its original state if the project fails is either gross ignorance or a blatant lie.

Adrian Cardona

BIRKIRKARA