Frank McDonald, the former environment editor of The Irish Times whose writing and investigative work reshaped Irish public debate on urban planning, architecture, and environmental heritage, has died at the age of 76 following a brief illness.

Born in Dublin in 1950, McDonald grew up in Cabra and attended University College Dublin before starting his career in journalism. He joined The Irish Times in 1979, becoming the newspaper's environment correspondent in 1986 and serving as environment editor from 2000 until his retirement in 2015.

Over a reporting career spanning more than four decades, McDonald gained national prominence for scrutinizing planning governance and urban development. His seminal 1985 book, "The Destruction of Dublin," offered a critical assessment of municipal decisions and inner-city dereliction in the capital. He went on to author several subsequent books on Dublin's architectural evolution and regularly covered international climate negotiations and global environmental policy.

McDonald is survived by his husband, Eamon Slater, his partner of four decades whom he married in 2016. Tributes across political, journalistic, and civic circles underscored his lasting contribution to public debate and environmental accountability in Ireland.