RESIDENTS have the opportunity to comment on how the land surrounding the Severn Estuary should be managed in years to come.

Interested parties will be able to put their views across at a consultation meeting which will take place at the Paget Rooms in Penarth on Wednesday, June 10, from 2pm to 6pm. (more…)

THE public can have their say on long-term plans for the South Devon and Dorset coastline in a series of consultation events in June.

The South Devon and Dorset Coastal Group’s production of a shoreline management plan will affect Sidmouth and other East Devon coastal towns in the future.

The nearest drop-in event to Sidmouth is at Bridport Leisure Centre on Wednesday, June 3, from 2pm to 6pm.

Alan Rafelt of the Environment Agency said it was important to plan for the future: “As a result of climate change, the coastline will be subject to rising sea level and more frequent storms.”

Check out the group’s website: www.sdadcag.org for more information.

Story on the Devon24 website

A group has been set up on the photo community website Flickr examining the effect of coastal erosion

Rising sea levels are speeding up the process of coastal erosion. Huge areas of human heritage and wildlife habitats are under threat. I’m based in the UK, an island country with threatened coastline all around. But many other countries around the world have similar concerns. This group is for people to record the coastal places that matter to them, which may change in future.

For an article about this issue, and why it matters to me, read:
bridgetmckenzie.blogspot.com/2008/10/heritage-on-shifting…

Find out more on the Threatened Costal Heritage Flickr group.

And don’t forget the NVCC Flickr group …

While other areas of public sector spending are being slashed, coastal defences remain a spending priority.  Phil Bishop reports on a sector keeping its head above water.

Coastal defences is only a niche market for civil engineering contractors but so far appears unthreatened by cuts likely to affect other areas of public spending.

A recent reorganisation of responsibilities now sees all the money passed through the Environment Agency (EA) rather than directly to local authorities from Defra. Acting as gatekeeper, the EA determines priorities and either acts as client directly or funds the local authorities, depending on the project. (more…)

THE thorny issue of coastal erosion and what the authorities should be doing about it will be addressed at a public meeting.

Maverick helicopter pilot Eddie Todd, who has plans to protect cliffs near Aldbrough, East Yorkshire, using submerged reefs of tyres, is unhappy with a new coastal defence plan being produced by consultants on behalf of East Riding Council. (more…)

A villager has been honoured for her role in a David and Goliath style battle against the might of a government quango.

Fifty nine year old Susan Lowes is standing tall after she played a pivotal part in bringing down a controversial policy to surrender her home and 25sq miles of the Norfolk Broads to the sea.

The former bank worker was at the forefront of a grassroots uprising against now ditched plans by Natural England to allow her village of Potter Heigham and five others to be submerged by the North Sea. (more…)

Coastal dwellers from across the country were among those who gathered in Happisburgh at the weekend to mark the 10th birthday of a leading lobby group and to thank the people of the Norfolk clifftop village for their years of support.

An evening meeting was held in St Mary’s church on Friday to formally celebrate the Coastal Concern Action Group’s decade of operation, followed by various events through the weekend. The actual date of the anniversary fell last month. (more…)

Coastal Concern Action Group, based in Happisburgh on the North Norfolk coast, held a meeting in their parish church on Friday attended by around 200 people, celebrating ten years of the founding of the group, and their achievements during that period.

After a welcome from Rev Philip Wood, Diana Wrightson, one of the members of the CCAG steering group, recapped the circumstances that led to a similar meeting held in St Mary’s Church ten years ago to discuss the issue of worsening coastal erosion of Happisburgh’s cliffs. Following that meeting CCAG was set up under the leadership of their Co-ordinator Malcolm Kerby.

Norman Lamb, the Lib Dem MP for North Norfolk then explained the political impact that CCAG had brought about through its policy of constructive dialogue rather than direct confrontation, and the scope of the influence that the group now received. He also summarised the current position that although there was currently no sign of change of a policy on defending the coast, there had been changes in attitude to the possibility of  ‘compensation’, and that the campaigning of CCAG had been a large factor in that change. (more…)

THE cost of coastal flooding in Suffolk and north Essex could run into billions of pounds, an insurance trade body has warned.

Climatologists predict sea levels on the east coast could rise by 40cms (15.75 inches) during the next 40 years, the Association of British Insurers said.

The financial impact on Lowestoft alone would be £550million, with more than 17,500 homes and commercial properties at risk of flooding. (more…)