A coastal community gathered at the weekend to discuss how best to move its erosion-threatened village hall further inland.

The exhibition at Trimingham, near Cromer, on Saturday was the beginning of one of the first projects to be funded by a share of north Norfolk’s £3m “pathfinder” cash.

The money, part of a nationwide pot of £11m, was awarded to the district council late last year by the government to tackle the effects of coastal change.

This weekend villagers got together to offer their thoughts on the plans which could see a new village hall built to replace the 75-year-old Pilgrim’s Shelter.

The current building on Loop Road, erected in 1935 as a place of rest for passing pilgrims, sits just metres from the edge of the cliff and is thought to have just 20 to 30 years before it is lost to the sea.

Rob Young, NNDC’s senior coastal planner, said £200,000 had been set aside from the pathfinder fund for the project and he wanted villagers to be involved.

“We thought from the beginning ‘let’s get the parish council to get local people to take ownership of the idea’,” he said.

The exhibition gave villagers a have a say about what it should look like, what it should be used for and where it should be.

June McDonald, Trimingham parish council’s vice chairman, said the village was in need of a new hall because the existing one was too small and could not meet the needs of the community.

She said the council did not want to waste money improving a building which would have such a short life and the funding came at just the right time.

Malcolm Kerby, chairman of the pathfinder reference group and co-ordinator of the Happisburgh-based Coastal Concern Action Group, said he was delighted to see five years of lobbying Westminster finally resulting in action.

He said: “We have stopped the government dead in its tracks. We have made them rethink their route. The pathfinder is the outward and highly demonstrable effect of what we have all been doing.”

Great Yarmouth and Waveney also received a share of the national pathfinder cash.

As well as schemes to move local amenities, councils are looking at using the money to help businesses relocate, buy homes which are under threat and rent them back to the owners, and protect vulnerable infrastructure like the cliff-top footpath at Cromer.

Story by Victoria Leggett in the Eastern Daily Press

Hopton villagers campaigning to save their homes from the North Sea have formed an action group to battle for money for defences – and plan to “go for the jugular”.

Brian Hardisty, chairman of the new Hopton Coastal Action Group, said the nine-member committee wanted the government to maintain rather than abandon sea defences and had formed arguments to support its position.

He added that clifftop housing worth an estimated £5m plus two holiday villages were at stake, and said he was unconvinced by statis-tics predicting the rate of erosion which were already well out, concrete defences near Corton having failed within three years and not the predicted 15-20 years.

Mr Hardisty said the committee’s first tasks were to:

Write to Great Yarmouth Borough Council managing direc-tor Richard Packham squarely laying the blame for beach depletion with the council and EastPort.

Ask to see a report from EastPort, concerning the impact of the Yarmouth outer harbour works on surrounding areas, that was rejected by the borough council because it was not in the correct format.

Mr Hardisty said the aim was “to go for the jugular” to win the best deal for the village. Forming an action group was especially important now to force people in authority to change their minds about the Shoreline Management Plan, which at present only called for a “hold-the-line” policy on defences in the short term and no active intervention in the medium and long term.

He believes building a rock berm or artificial reef would be cheaper in the long run than buying back properties, adding: “Why can’t they make a positive commitment now which will stabilise house prices?

More about the group from Mr Hardisty on 01502 732868.

Story in the Great Yarmouth Mercury

A village and more than 1,000 acres of land would be lost to the sea if plans laid out in a blueprint for tackling erosion in Suffolk are accepted.

The Environment Agency’s Shoreline Management Plan calls for the continued defence of major towns and villages from flooding and coastal erosion.

But it also says over the next 30 to 40 years the village of Covehithe will be surrendered to the sea.

Property and historic sites in Easton Bavents and Dunwich will also be lost.

The plan, which goes before Suffolk County Council’s cabinet next Tuesday, also says:

• Sea defences at Lowestoft, Southwold and Felixstowe will be maintained
• The main area of Kessingland will be protected and the A12 will be defended
• Some land and property will be lost at Pakefield
• The historic village of Covehithe, including its 15th Century church, will be lost to the sea
• About 1,000 acres (400 hectares) of land between Kessingland and Southwold will be lost.

Edward Vere Nicoll, estate manager for The Benacre Estate – which owns a large portion of land at Covehithe and the surrounding area, hit out at the plan.

He accepted the need for a “managed retreat” of the coast, but not for the wholesale “sacrifice” of large tracts of land and a village.

He said the plan ignored the willingness of landowners to pay for work to help protect the coastline.

“Local people are all pretty disgusted and seriously worried about it,” he said.

A report to the council says due to rising sea levels, erosion risk management is a priority.

It recommends the Environment Agency plan be endorsed by the council, but Guy McGregor, portfolio holder for roads, transport and planning, stressed that any final decision is still open for discussion.

“We simply have to engage with communities, which is why it is going before our cabinet committee,” he said.

“We look forward to the discussion.”

Mr McGregor said that the cost involved in protecting some parts of the coast could be huge.

No-one from the Environment Agency was available for comment.

Story on the BBC News website

Buy-to-let schemes for cliff-top houses and the potential relocation of businesses are among the ideas being put forward as part of a multi-million pound project to protect communities living around the Norfolk and Suffolk coast.

East of England minister Barbara Follett joined coastal councillors and environmental experts at the second Coastal Initiative Conference yesterday to find out about the projects which are being funded by nearly £5m of government grants.

The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) awarded money at the end of last year to local authorities in North Norfolk, Great Yarmouth and Waveney to push forward with projects to find out how communities can adapt to the impacts of erosion and coastal change.

Now the different schemes, which are part of a government-funded programme called Pathfinder, are taking shape in a bid to address the unique problems being faced by those living on the east coast.

Karen Thomas, a coastal advisor for the Environment Agency, said that options being considered to mitigate the effects of erosion included councils buying some cliff-top homes and leasing them back to the villagers, so that people do not lose all of their savings, and relocating some businesses to keep them economically viable.

The Pathfinder projects will also encourage councils and villagers to work together to find options which suit the individual needs of each place and its inhabitants.

She said that the lessons learned in East Anglia will be used in the future to help other threatened areas. “Up until now we’ve always wanted to be able to give people a set of solutions for their problems. These Pathfinders allow us to test out planning, education, community and funding ideas, so they’re a huge learning opportunity,” she said.

Addressing yesterday’s conference in Ipswich, Mrs Follett: said: “I am glad that the Pathfinder schemes are coming together now that we have the resources available to us. This will allow us to come up with a ‘tool kit’ of possible solutions so that for any situation, there are options which have been shown to work.”

North Norfolk District Council was awarded a £3m grant in December, which is being spent on protecting vulnerable infrastructure, including the cliff top footpath at Cromer’s western end, the Pilgrim Shelter at Trimingham and the coastguard hut, car parks and footpaths in Happisburgh.

The £290,000 awarded to Great Yarmouth Borough Council is being focused on a community-led project in Scratby and Waveney District Council’s £1.5m will be used in part to ensure the future use of the beach at Corton and to look at possible relocation options for villagers in Easton Bavents, near Southwold.

Story by Haley Mace in the Eastern Daily Press

A SMALL community has told of its determination to protect its homes against coastal erosion after learning it is set to be abandoned to the ravages of the North Sea.

Residents in the tiny hamlet of Covehithe, just north of Southwold, face an uncertain future if Suffolk’s Shoreline Management Plan (SMP) is given the green light.

The scheme has been drawn up to suggest how flood and erosion risk should be tackled along the coast from Lowestoft Ness to Languard Point in Felixstowe.

At Covehithe it recommends a policy of “no active intervention” for the next century – meaning that within 30 to 40 years the entire hamlet, including homes, the historic 15th century church and important conservation areas, will be lost.

But in a move that could be mirrored along the Suffolk coast the community is planning to pay for its own sea defences.

The settlement of Covehithe falls within the Benacre Estate, which has been run by the Gooch family since 1746 and is currently owned by Lady Gooch.

Last night her son-in-law, Edward Vere Nicoll, estate manager, said he had already met with representatives from Natural England to discuss the possibility of funding their own sea defences.

“We are not just going to sit here and do nothing,” he said. “The Benacre Estate loses 16 acres every year- that’s a minimum. What we would like to do is take an area and see how we get on for two or three years. We’re not going to stop the erosion but we might be able to slow it down.

“Covehithe is a beautiful village with a wonderful church and community. There are homes and there is a farm. We have to try and protect it. Otherwise it will all be lost.

“I have had some very positive discussions with Natural England and I am hoping we will be able to pay for our own defences – which would be similar in design to what has already been done at Dunwich and which has just been agreed for Thorpeness.

“It was a wish of my dear late father-in-law Sir Timothy Gooch that we try to protect it and that is what we will do.”

The SMP is due to be discussed by the Environment Agency Flood Defence Committee on Friday. Its recommendation for Covehithe reads: “The historically important village…and areas of internationally designated habitat would be lost. Despite this, it is not considered sustainable to attempt to manage the erosion.”

It suggests finding alternative sites for nature conservation and investing in further research to record valuable information before it is lost.

If approved the plan will go to the Government for an environmental assessment, before being submitted to the Environment Agency director – which should see it given full approval in the summer.

A spokesman for Suffolk Coastal District Council, which has led the SMP project, said any proposed scheme would have to be submitted to Waveney District Council. However, he added that the recommendations do not prevent local small scale schemes so long as they do not impact on coastal processes such as sediment supply, affect conservation interests or the landscape quality of the area.

A spokeswoman for Waveney District Council said it would be happy to talk with representatives from the Benacre Estate, discussions which would also involve the Environment Agency and Natural England.

“We await the adoption of the SMP and it will be challenging to tick all their [the Benacre Estate] boxes and satisfy the environmental constraints of the plan,” she said.

Story by Craig Robinson in the Ipswich Evening Star

BUSINESSES and landowners are among those being given a say in the future of The Wash coastline between Wolferton Creek and South Hunstanton.

The newly formed key stakeholders sub-group is a partnership set up between the Environment Agency and West Norfolk Council to represent the interests of the local community and tourism.

These are the most likely parties to be affected by future changes.

Members of the subgroup, representing caravan site owners, beach bungalow owners, landowners, parish and town councils and other local businesses, are working together as a result of the Wash Shoreline Management Plan which completed a three-month public consultation
on January 15.

Chairman of the group, Brian Long, who is the borough council’s cabinet
member for the environment, said: “The Shoreline Management Plan sets out how The Wash coast may be managed over the next 100 years, taking into account the likely effects of erosion and sea level rise.

This group has been set up to ensure that those most affected by any
changes have a say in what happens. We have been very pleased with the support the members have given to the group so far.”

At a meeting this month, members discussed initial funding options for the management of the shoreline.

This included the allocation of £20,000 from the Government’s Pathfinder funding initiative which aims to help communities affected by coastal change.

The sub-group was also informed about work between the borough council and the Environment Agency, working together to produce a protocol which both would use to determine planning applications in the flood risk area along the Wolferton Creek to Hunstanton coastline.

The protocol, which has yet to be finalised, will be subject to a public consultation as part of the process.

Story in the Lynn News

A COASTAL community has vowed to continue its fight to have long-term sea defences installed on its shore after the Environment Agency refused to fund the project.

Bootle beach is currently categorised under the government’s Shoreline Management Plan (SMP) as “no active intervention”.

That would mean the beach and nearby Eskmeals gun range road would be allowed to wash away.

An emergency meeting was held with villagers, Copeland Borough Council, Cumbria County Council and the Environment Agency in a bid to get the government to change the policy and defend the beach.

Mike Fell, team leader for the Environment Agency’s flood and coastal risk management group, said the sea defences were not financially viable.

He said: “Our funding now is national funding, and the work we do is prioritised. Would the defences be sustainable? Would you spend £10m to protect two houses?

“It is not a financial option. If we haven’t got the money we can’t do it. It would be cheaper in the long run to move the road back, rather than build a big sea wall to keep the weather back.”

The SMP is a government plan for the country’s coastline defences.

It has written the plan to prioritise which coastlines it will invest cash into saving, and which it will leave for nature to take its course.

The SMP has to be passed by borough councillors before it can be sent back to the government.

Bootle’s borough councillor and ex-Copeland mayor Keith Hitchen said: “We all know the government is strapped for cash, but there are ways and means. We can make things happen if we work together. This plan is not signed off. It won’t get signed off by the majority of councillors if it doesn’t change what it is saying.

“How can we do it, what do we need to do?

“So I’m asking those people who control what happens with the beach at Bootle to sit down with this parish council and say how we can make it happen. I want to make sure we can put some defences on the beach that don’t ruin the beauty of the beach, but enhance it.

“Things have got to change and we will fight all the way along the line. We aren’t just losing a beach, we are losing a national asset.”

Initially residents of Bootle said the borough council, which has been tasked with managing coastal erosion, had stood in the way of installing short-term concrete defences on the beach.

David Bucheli, coastal erosion technician for the borough council, has agreed to back the villagers’ fight to obtain a licence to install the blocks.

He said: “We are all happy about it. I can’t see any issues that would arise. The blocks should be seen as a short-term solution.”

Bootle parish councillor Trudy Harrison said: “Bootle Parish Council is strongly opposing the SMP proposal towards no active intervention, with specific regard to the area of coastline known as Stubb Place. The council is pushing for a decision instead, to manage re-alignment in this 200-metre stretch to protect the road.

“The national park is also positively involved and keen to improve the beach area.

“The next step is to obtain consent and a licence from The Marine and Fisheries Agency, then design a scheme to both protect and enhance the area for all to use and enjoy.

“We now have an active group of supporters, growing by the day, proving the point that, given encouragement and permission, communities will help themselves.”

The road is the only link road to the Ministry of Justice’s Eskmeals Gun range, which employs hundreds of workers.

Managers for the range said work to install the concrete blocks would be organised and funded locally.

Cumbria County Council is in charge of maintaining the road.

Council Highways engineer John Dell said: “The county council has a duty to maintain the surface of the road. The definition of the road is two spades deep. If the road gets washed away, that responsibility gets washed away with it.

“The county council has produced some schemes to defend the road at that point near Bootle. We don’t have defence funding.

“We are not the defence authority, so we have no power to defend the coast. We were going to put things in, but we were refused permission to do this, so we are left with an undefended road.”

The fight to save the beach is part of the Bootle Community Plan, which was launched last month.

The aim is to sustain the village’s falling economy by building houses and restoring tourist attractions, such as the beach.

Story in the North West Evening Mail

CAMPAIGNERS are making waves in their battle to protect Hopton’s seaside community from erosion.

Clifftop resident Brian Hardisty says officials have played down the effect of the outer harbour on the shrinking sands and is seeking answers, possibly by making a Freedom of Information request to see “secret” documents.

Mr Hardisty wants to set up an independent coastal erosion group to challenge the Shoreline Management Plan which is being revised this year.

So far enough people have come forward to form a committee, but as word was spreading more village folk were becoming concerned, he said.

On Saturday Great Yarmouth MP Tony Wright visited Hopton beach to see for himself the scale of depletion and also to discuss erosion problems with the clifftop residents.

Mr Wright described as an “eye-opener” his visit to the shingly stretch, adding: “I knew there were some difficulties down there but quite clearly something needs to be done about it. I will be contacting various agencies.

“They claim it’s happened since the harbour has been built and if that is the case we need to find a solution and get the beach back again.

“The most important thing is to accept that there is a problem and that something needs to be done about it.”

Mr Wright added that he hoped the government-funded Pathfinder Project – looking for a plan B for coastal erosion – would have something useful to say.

Former power station manager Mr Hardisty, said: “People are now starting to come along to parish council meetings worried about coastal erosion. It will take a while – people who live further back think it is not going to bother them but some are starting to worry.”

He said he aimed to leaflet all 80 clifftop home-owners in due course. The fledgling Hopton group has also won the support of veteran coastal campaigner Malcolm Kerby, who has taken local erosion issues to the heart of Westminster.

Story in the Great Yarmouth Mercury

The investment includes funds to build new and maintain existing river and coastal defence schemes, develop flood forecasting technologies and heighten public awareness of flood risk.

Today’s investment forms part of the Environment Agency’s strategy to reduce the risk of flooding to more than 200,000 additional properties across England and Wales by 2015.

Some of the key flood and coastal erosion defence projects planned to benefit from funding in the 2010/11 financial year include:

• Nottingham (Midlands): £14m on this £51m scheme to protect 16,000 homes and businesses along a 27km stretch of the River Trent. The first stage of the works was finished ahead of schedule in January, between Sawley and the River Erewash.
• Barking and Dagenham (Thames): £12m to improve protection to almost 5,500 properties. This includes the construction of two new pumping stations and the refurbishment of tidal sluices along the Beam River and Gores Brook.
• Dymchurch (Southern): £11.9m to complete ongoing works on this £60m sea defence scheme which will contribute towards the protection to over 6,000 properties.
• Wigan (North West): £5m to construct an upstream flood storage basin and bring improved flood protection to around 600 homes in Wigan.
• Clwyd Estuary (Wales): £1.3m to reinstate flood banks on both sides of the River Clwyd. This work will help protect 1,150 properties in Kinmel Bay and parts of Rhyl.
• Leeds (Yorkshire and North East): almost £0.5m to progress plans for flood defences in Leeds. The proposed scheme will cost a total of £149m – the largest ever planned inland flood defence scheme to date. The completed scheme would increase protection to one of the largest commercial areas in England and about 4,500 homes in the city centre.
• Morpeth (Yorkshire and North East): almost £0.4m to progress plans to develop flood defences in Morpeth, most recently affected by flooding in 2008. The proposed £17m scheme is scheduled to start in late 2011 and finish by late 2013, providing increased protection to 1,000 properties.

The Environment Agency has welcomed increasing Government spending on flood and coastal defences, but has warned that increased funding must be found to reduce risk and protect against rising sea levels and the more intense rainstorms that will come with climate change. The Government’s environmental watchdog has estimated that investment in the building and maintenance of defences will need to increase to £1bn a year by 2035 to maintain current levels of protection.

Flood defence schemes provide benefits to communities including opportunities for economic development, jobs and tourism. The Environment Agency already seeks financial contributions from organisations such as developers and industries who directly benefit from flood defence schemes and will look to increasing contributions from other sources to complement public investment from Government.

Key schemes completed during 2009/2010 include the final stages of a £40m scheme to protect 3,300 properties in Carlisle. The project, after emergency Environment Agency repairs to shore up the incomplete sections, protected 800 properties from flooding during last November’s Cumbria floods. The Hull Tidal Barrier received £4m this financial year as part of a £10m maintenance programme to upgrade the structure.

Environment Agency Chairman Lord Chris Smith said:

“We, together with our partners in local authorities and Internal Drainage Boards, will invest over £745m on protecting lives and property from flooding and coastal erosion in the year to March 2011.

“The 2007 floods cost homeowners, businesses, emergency services and others some £3.2bn. The high costs of flooding underline the importance of continued investment in reducing flood risk, particularly in face of the more frequent and heavy storms and rising sea levels that will come with climate change.

“It is essential that we continue to defend communities, businesses and the economy from the risk of flooding and coastal erosion. The Environment Agency has completed over 116 flood defence schemes in the past two years, providing increased protection to over 77,500 extra properties.

“Whilst continued investment is crucial, flooding cannot always be prevented so communities must also take responsibility for being prepared – for example by signing up to the Environment Agency’s free flood warning service.”

The investment plans come a day after the Environment Agency announced moves to automatically enrol 500,000 properties to its free flood warnings service, almost doubling the total number registered to almost one million.

A PLAN to stop a road collapsing into the sea is being held back by red tape, it is claimed.

The road leading to Eskmeals Gun Range, near Bootle, is seven feet away from the highest water level during a storm.

Fears are mounting that one or two extreme waves will result in the road falling into the sea.

Gun range managers QinetiQ plans to install concrete blocks on the beach to protect the road, but needs permission from “a number of parties” before the work can be carried out.

A QinetiQ spokeswoman said: “The deterioration of the road is a concern for QinetiQ, which operates the MOD Eskmeals Range, as well as for others in the community, including local authorities.

“We are more than happy to work with people to try to find a solution. However, we cannot act without the permission of the relevant authorities, such as those ultimately responsible for the road or the local environment.

“One suggested interim solution, to help reinforce the existing sea defences with surplus concrete blocks from MOD Eskmeals, would also require permission and approval from a number of parties before it can proceed.”

Bootle villagers braved the freezing weather on Thursday to meet Copeland Borough Council officials and gun range manager David Harrison in a plea to save the Eskmeals road. Villagers are now demanding that something be done.

Mr Harrison offered the use of 100 concrete blocks, known as Pendine blocks, to help with the protection.

But Mr Harrison said similar efforts in the past had been blocked, as the act would be classed as fly-tipping.

Mr Harrison said: “There is a short-term solution there, that will buy more time to deal with the road.”

Lead campaigner and Bootle parish councillor Trudy Harrison said: “The on-site beach meeting in Bootle was organised to highlight the plight of residents and local businesses. The road is but two storms away from falling into the sea. As one of only one of a few beaches in the National Park, it should be preserved and treasured. I doubt its current condition fits the criteria for a world-class tourist destination.

“However, the meeting was hopeful and positive.

“I will be pursuing a meeting with the National Park Authority, Copeland Borough Council, the Highways Agency and the Environment Agency to find a sensible, low-cost solution to this urgent problem.

“Let’s hope when free materials, machinery, labour and local need are highlighted, we can move forward with a pro-active approach.”

Bootle farmer Casson Fox said: “If you put those blocks down now, I can guarantee that road will still be there in 10 years’ time.”

The need for the road is highlighted in the Bootle Community Plan, which was launched to spearhead the village’s economic survival.

The road has been left unprotected in line with the government’s Shoreline Management Plan which has a “no action” policy on the road.

The plan outlines which shorelines around the country should be protected and which ones should not be. Bootle Parish Council will officially stand against the plan at a meeting with the borough council in Muncaster on February 11.

Robert Morris-Eyton, land agent for Stubb Place Farm, which sits yards from the threatened road, said: “The problem is there are so many agencies in involved. We need to sit everyone round a table and thrash this out. “Eskmeals employs vasts amount of people. It is an important business in the area.”

A spokesman for the county council said QinetiQ would need permission from the borough council, and not from the county council, for defences to be put on the beach. The borough council’s flood and coastal engineer David Bechelli refused to talk to the Evening Mail at the site on Thursday. Ian Curwen, press officer for the borough council, was unavailable for comment.

Story in the North West Evening Mail