Over the next two weeks, subject to weather and sea conditions, large rocks will be delivered by barges to West Beach so that new and improved sea defences can be constructed.
The Environment Agency and Dorset Council have partnered up to work on a new multi-million pound sea defence project at West Bay, West Dorset. As part of this crucial work, a delivery of rock arrived and is now anchored off of West Bay. The rock cargo, governed by tide times, will then be unloaded onto the beach over the next two weeks.
Full installation of the rock groynes and revetment will take approximately two months and involve the use of large excavators, dump trucks and bulldozers. 40,000 tonnes of rock and 10,000 tonnes of shingle is being imported. The largest rocks will weigh in the region of 10 tonnes each. The works cannot be done in winter as storms would endanger the scheme.
Why this work is important
The beach defences protect 148 residential properties, 112 commercial properties and caravans at Parkdean Holiday Park. Each winter, stormy seas damage East Beach and waves over-topping the Esplanade at West Beach caused significant flooding of properties in 2014. To address this, a more robust defence system against flooding is needed.
How this will be funded
£5m of the funding is being provided by central government under the DEFRA Flood Defence Grant-in-Aid. £3m has been provided by the former West Dorset District Council, and £1m has been granted from Local Levy by the Wessex Regional Flood Defence Committee.
Beach closures
West Beach will be closed until early July for the duration of works and access to East Beach will be restricted at certain times. We regret that some inconvenience may be caused for this relatively short period of time. The works are crucial to ensure the safety of residents and local businesses who are at continued risk from floods and also the continued economic viability of West Bay.
Want more information?
We are continuing to hold a series of drop-in sessions at the Salt House to keep local residents, businesses and visitors updated with the latest on these important works.
These open sessions will have at least one representative – either from the Environment Agency or Dorset Council – to answer any questions you may have and to give an update on progress.
Open from 1:30 – 4:30pm on these dates:
- Thursday 16 May
- Thursday 30 May
- Thursday 13 June
- Thursday 27 June
very good article thank you