You pass flaming oil wells, through the emirates of Sharjah and Ras al-Khaimah, before the endless development withers and the straight road begins to buckle towards the Musandam border, where a cliffside track winds around the fractured coast.
The council received 16 letters objecting to thedevelopment - mainly about road access to the site and developing on a flood plain - and 128 letters in support.