Vietnam’s Quang Binh ponders building ten seaside golf courses A white sand beach area where the golf courses are expected to be built is seen in Quang Binh Province, located in central Vietnam. Tuoi Tre While the administration of the central province of Quang Binh is only seeking an investor for one seaside golf course project, a company from Hanoi wants to develop ten times that number at triple the investment, and local authorities seem interested. But residents and experts in Quang Binh, home to the famous UNESCO-recognized Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park and the world-renowned Son Doong Cave, do not think the province really needs ten golf courses at the expense of its beautiful, empty beaches. The Quang Binh administration has been calling for investment in 34 projects, including one to build a 36-hole golf course, estimated to cost VND1 trillion (US$45.93 million), on a 200-hectare land plot along the beach in Hai Ninh Commune, Quang Ninh District. Hanoi-based FLC Group studied the zoned area for the facility and came up with a proposal to set up as many as ten courses along the beach with a total investment of VND3 trillion ($137.8 million), the province’s administration revealed at a recent meeting. The developer said the ten courses will be located next to each other on a stretch of beaches spanning a total area of 1,000 hectares. While the Quang Binh administration never expected to have so many golf courses in the province, it has found the proposition feasible and attractive. “The developer has carefully weighed the economic benefits for the locality and themselves when making such a proposal,” the province’s spokesman, Truong An Ninh, said at the meeting. Ninh said there is already a suitable location for the project, which is a 3,000 hectare area of empty white sand beaches between Quang Ninh District and Le Thuy District. There is also a newly constructed part of National Highway No.1 near the area, which means the developer will not need to conduct site clearance and compensation tasks to prepare infrastructure for the project, according to the official. “The project will also generate jobs for low-income earners,” he added. The official said the golf course will increase the tourism attractiveness of Quang Binh, besides Phong Nha-Ke Bang, Son Doong Cave, its famous beaches such as Nhat Le, Bao Ninh, Hai Binh and Da Nhay, and many stunning caves. Quang Binh received nearly two million tourists, including 40,000 international holidaymakers, in the year to July, according to the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism. “These will be potential customers for the golf courses,” department deputy director Nguyen Van Ky said. Ky said even building a series of 15 golf courses will only “earn a distinct feature for Quang Binh.” “If we only build two 18-hole courses, what should we do when customers demand to play at bigger and more deluxe courses? Should we willingly let them travel to a neighboring locality to do so?”, he said. Most of the beaches in Quang Binh are still clean and beautiful, but locals and experts worry that their beauty and naturalness will be destroyed by the golf projects. The seawater quality may also be affected as the lawns on the courses need to be treated with fertilizers and plant protection chemicals. In addressing such concerns, spokesman Ninh said there are many existing golf courses along beaches in central Vietnam, including those in Nghe An, Thanh Hoa, Da Nang, Quang Nam and Thua Thien-Hue. “These courses meet all environment protection requirements,” he said. “The developer and provincial administration will also seriously conduct the environmental assessment report for the project before implementing it.” Le Minh Ngan, director of the province’s Department of Natural Resources and Environment, echoed the idea, saying the environmental assessment report will be approved by central-level authorities, not the Quang Binh administration. Quang Binh will first have to prepare zoning for golf course development in the project, and obtain approval from Prime Minster Nguyen Tan Dung before getting anything started. Tuoitrenews