Yas Links Golf Club adds its support to 2011 Earth Hour
Yas Links Abu Dhabi, the Middle East’s newest and most critically acclaimed golf course, will take part in the World Wildlife Fund’s (WWF) 2011 Earth Hour on Saturday, March 26, at 8:30pm (local time), adding its support to help tackle climate change.
Since it opened, exactly a year ago, Yas Links has championed efforts that help tackle climate change and endorse environmental and sustainable issues to create the perfect environment where nature and wildlife are harnessed – safeguarding the natural world.
Yas Links has invested in solar-panelled golf buggies and uses energy-saving light bulbs in its clubhouse as part of its corporate green initiative. The club also encourages its members to adopt commonplace recycling initiatives, such as paper, cans and plastics, and supports environmental charities such as Greenpeace.
As a business, Yas Links strongly promotes ‘green thinking’ among its employees, a stance that has led to a beach clean-up exercise, tocollect rubbish gathered along its coastline, being organised for April.
Yas Links’ golf course maintenance team is also looking at ways of minimising water consumption by studying the relative merits of using seawater on sample plots for growing plants both around the course and on the island itself.
Chris White, General Manager of developer Aldar Properties (Golf Division), said: “As an organisation, Yas Links strongly believes in the environmental efforts WWF is championing.
“Since its creation, Yas Links has established deep-rooted ecological and sustainable foundations that have helped create a unique coastal habitat for Yas Island. It is home to a rich ecosystem of bird and marine life that golf course architect Kyle Phillips wanted to preserve. He was keen to create an extraordinary links course that not only lent itself perfectly to exciting golf holes, but, more importantly, benefited from an approved environmentalprogramme.”
To celebrate Yas Links’ first anniversary, the golf course is continuing to roll out its green initiatives and will, as part of its environmental programme, increase its dedication to the island’s mangrove plantation.
