Consultation’s now closed as far as the Shoreline Management Plan for The Wash and that bit of the Norfolk Coast’s concerned.

There’ll doubtless be an uproar at some point, when people wake up to the sections which apply to Hunstanton’s much-loved candy cliffs.

Erosion of same won’t just threaten the Lighthouse within a generation – depending which projection or forecast you believe.

It will also spell some serious consequences for Cliff Parade, unless something’s done – as opposed to the leave it to natural forces approach outlined in the draft Shoreline Management Plan.

We wonder what people living up there think. Could this be the next Happisburgh within a generation..?

CCAG was created ten years ago today. It grew out of the deep frustration and fear within the community.

Frustration because Government’s attitude and approach to the management of our coast seemed to be devoid of any common sense or understanding.

Fear because the prospects for individuals and the community were extremely worrying. Everyone felt they had no voice and were being abandoned out of hand.

Over those ten years some things have changed, some have not. To a lesser extent fear still plays a part in some people’s lives here. However frustration has been reduced because we know we have played a significant role in beginning to change Governments attitude and approach to coast management.

We have become increasingly proactive in seeking change that will benefit all coastal communities not just our own.

It has been our fervent desire to be a leading part of the solution rather than a leading part of the problem. To that end we have worked extremely hard to understand the problems and difficulties all levels of Government face when attempting to manage the coast.

We have been, and remain, committed to fostering a wider understanding by all involved of each others problems and feel very strongly that we must continue the effort and build on the achievements of the last ten years.

Climate change and sea level rise will undoubtedly test our collective resolve as we move through this century. Of paramount importance will be our ability, with adequate institutional arrangements, to manage our way through.

CCAG is committed absolutely to working with everyone involved irrespective of political party or level of authority to achieve a socially just coastal philosophy and policy which we can all ‘buy in to’.

Article by Malcolm Kerby on the Coastal Concern Action Group website

It has been extremely interesting watching the televised ‘grilling’ of Bankers by the Treasury Select Committee over recent days.

What occurs to me is the stark parallels which can be drawn from the way the Banks were (mis)managed and the way we (mis)manage the coast.

It seems to me the demise of the Banks (which has led to financial chaos) is due largely to suspect ‘Risk Management’ techniques and the marked absence of good old fashioned sound banking principles and practice. The result is financial chaos on an unprecedented scale.

Read the full article by Malcolm Kerby on the Coastal Concern Action Group website

I note with interest the press release from Natural England (NE) covering their decision to appeal the recent High Court judgement re Peter Boggis and the Easton Bavents cliffs.

Sean Thomas (Regional Director NE) says the judgement “threatens to stifle the ways in which advice and expert opinion can be used to inform planning and development decisions”

That, I would respectfully contend, is absolute rubbish. What it may do is force NE to take a more open, honest democratic approach which must surely be in the public interest.

Read the full article by Malcolm Kerby on the Cosatal Concern Action Group website.

Surely we (the taxpayers) have a right to expect a constructive lead from our Government on issues as important to the well being of our island nation as coast management? What we are getting is a whole series of ‘measures’, ‘plans’, ’strategies’ and ‘policies’ emanating from the centre which are unworkable, unacceptable and seem to increasingly prove how little comprehension exists within central Government and its Quangos of how the coast and its communities function, or what is needed to maintain their functionality through global warming, climate change and sea level rise.

Read the full article by Malcolm Kerby on the Coastal Concern Action Group website.

There surely can be few other areas of Government which provide poorer value for money than DEFRA’s Flood and Coast Protection (F&CP) department.

F&CP now has it’s own “Bermuda Triangle” the three sides of which are DEFRA, Environment Agency (EA) and Natural England (NE).

Dubbed Bermuda Triangle because if one lives on the coast and happens to be caught between those three (one department and two quangos) it is quite likely that one will disappear into the administrative, process led and target orientated black hole which they seem to create.

The only thing which seems to disappear faster than any individual caught in it is taxpayers money.

Read the rest of Malcom Kerby’s comments on the Coastal Concern Action Group website

I really like this: ‘oceans define borders but defy politics’ This makes me think about Britain’s eroding coastline. Certain parts of the coast especially in Norfolk is eroding faster than ever before. There are communities such as Happisburgh, Walcott, Mundesley that in the not so distant future might be completely swallowed up by the sea and wiped of the map. The U.K government says it is to costly to protect the whole of the coastline. ‘Managed retreat’ is the term scientists has given this approach, meaning that governments around the world are making decisions about what it can afford to save and what has to be sacrificed. A big part of the Norfolk coast seem to be out of luck, the sea defences are considered unsustainable and new ones will not be built. This mean that many people stand to loose their homes to the sea, farmers will loose their livelihood, historic sites and nature reserves will disappear. Unlike in countries like The Netherlands where compensation is given for loss of land to erosion, in the U.K there is no compensation. The effect the sea has on the land has become a political issue. How to decide what is protected and what is to be sacrificed? And there is talk of what could be Britain’s first climate change refugees.

Read more on her blog

At a packed public meeting in Hickling last night, the former Environment Secretary and Chairman of the David Cameron’s Quality of Life Commission, John Gummer MP, called for the Government to abandon its policy of managed retreat and to return to what he called a policy of, “what we have we hold.”

Mr Gummer, who was visiting North Norfolk at the request of the Conservative Spokesman for the area, Trevor Ivory, said, “It is a scandal that with all the resources and technology that are available to us today, our Government is telling us that we can no longer defend land that has been defended for centuries. It is an insult to those previous generations who had less, but still made sacrifices to defend out coastline.”

“But what is even worse is that we are leaving future generations to pick up the bill, because wherever we draw the line, we will have to defend our coast at some point. By failing to fund coastal defences now, what we are really saying is that we are going to leave it to our children and grandchildren to pay later.” Mr Gummer added.

Read the full article by Trevor Ivory on www.trevorivory.com

Hickling Broad is the largest of the Norfolk Broads and is at threat from sea-level rise. Patrick Barkham’s statement that “local environmental groups such as the Norfolk Wildlife Trust have spoken hopefully of valuable new salt water habitats if this part of the Broads is submerged” does not represent our view (Waves of destruction, April 17). We own and manage Hickling Broad and are deeply concerned about its future.

Read the full article on the Guardian comment is free website

“We must be pragmatic about the forthcoming environmental challenges, which is why Natural England is undertaking groundbreaking research

“Society needs to face up to the stark realities of climate change. We are locked into unavoidable changes for at least the next 50 years; we all know that, not least because all of us have had it drummed into us over the past few years. It’s when the examples start to filter through into people’s lives that reality hits.

“Natural England is leading on groundbreaking research to assess the potential impact that climate change may have on England’s natural environment. Our research in the Norfolk Broads is just the beginning of the journey, as we learn how to help our wildlife adapt to the impact of climate change at a landscape scale.”

Read the full article by Martin Doughty on the Guardian “comment is free” Website