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Coastal protection

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Southern Felixstowe coastal defences

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Construction of replacement groynes between the War Memorial and Landguard Common

Environment Agency logoWork got underway on the Southern Felixstowe sea defences in March 2008 after the Environment Agency gave the green light for the £10m project that had been drawn up with Suffolk Coastal.

A series of 21 rock fishtail groynes are being constructed and the beach between the War Memorial and Landguard Common will be recharged by adding extra shingle to the existing beach to raise the level. The work is expected to finish by the end of September 2008, with parts of the beach reopening as the work continues.

Work to place new sand and shingle on the beach on the north side of the Pier is complete and the beach re-opened for public use. The first groynes south of the Pier are complete and part of the beach has been be re-opened.

New groynes to the south of Manor Terrace are under construction but as the contractor has to cross this part of the beach to construct groynes further to the south, this beach will remain closed.

The construction contract has been awarded to Team Van Oord, a joint venture of Van Oord UK Ltd, Mackley Construction and May Gurney.

You can find out more about the scheme and progress of the works in the project newsletters:

Follow this link for help with downloading and opening PDF files.

More about the background to the project and information about the Southern Felixstowe Coastal Strategy is given below.

Southern Felixstowe Coastal Strategy

The Environment Agency, in partnership with Suffolk Coastal, commissioned Black & Veatch Ltd to review the Southern Felixstowe Coastal Strategy previously issued in June 2003.

Strategy study areaThis review updated the coastal defence strategy for Southern Felixstowe in light of revised guidance for sea level rise and economic appraisal. The coastal defence strategy is designed to enhance the frontage and provide protection from flooding for the next 150 years. The strategy also includes an allowance of 1.1m for sea level rise over this time frame.

In the short term, the updated strategy supports the case for funding of urgent coastal defence works (including the construction of 21 replacement groynes and adding extra shingle to the beach to raise the level) to the Felixstowe frontage between the War Memorial and Landguard Common (work commenced in March 2008).

The strategy study area

The study area for the strategy covered the flood risk area from the War Memorial, just north of the pier, to the Trimley Marshes in the Stour and Orwell Estuary. The following assets are located within the study area:

  • 960 residential properties;
  • 468 other local businesses and commercial properties;
  • the Port of Felixstowe;
  • the amenity beach;
  • the leisure and amenity facilities adjacent to the main amenity beach;
  • the War Memorial;
  • Landguard Fort and its associated fieldworks;
  • the Landguard Common Site of Special Scientific Interest and Local Nature Reserve;
  • Trimley Marshes, an important wetland reserve and Special Protection Area.

Southern Felixstowe coastal strategy review

In developing a coastal flood risk management strategy for Southern Felixstowe, the following strategic options were considered:

  • No active intervention (do nothing) – walking away from the existing defences.
  • Do minimum – maintaining the existing coastal defences until structural failure.
  • Improve – improve the coastal defences to provide a uniform standard of protection against coastal flooding.

The following sub-options were also considered. These are standards of protection, which represent the probability of a flood event exceeding the coastal defences:

  • 1 in 50 years;
  • 1 in 100 years;
  • 1 in 200 years.

The preferred option

The strategic options for Southern Felixstowe were assessed based on the latest technical, environmental and economic factors and take into account consultation to date. The assessment process identified that ‘Improve to 1 in 100 years standard of protection’ is the preferred option for Southern Felixstowe. (The proposed standard of protection was subsequently reviewed and considered too low for Felixstowe. The appraisal was re-run and the standard subsequently increased to 1 in 150 years).

The implementation of the preferred option will involve the following:

  • Routine maintenance of the existing (plus any new) coastal defences.

  • As soon as funding is available and approval gained (work commenced in March 2008), construction of 21 rock fishtail groynes and beach recharge (addition of extra shingle to the existing beach to raise the level) between the War Memorial and Landguard Common. The raised beach will serve to protect the existing sea wall from further damage.

  • Throughout the strategy period raising of existing defences where required and feasible, followed by any necessary replacement over the next 150 years.

More information about the strategy is available in the July 2007 project newsletter (new window PDF 193KB).

Follow this link for help with downloading and opening PDF files.

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