Upgrade of groynes and beach at Clacton and Holland-on-Sea continues. Nothing is done to stop sea eroding beach, sea wall and cliffs at Naze and Seawick
Clacton
New groynes and recharged beach at Clacton near pier
Photo from earlier year shows how much sand had dropped – about 20 feet
In the distance you can see a reef that has been built out to sea, for boats to shelter behind
Presumably this touches the bottom
So the groynes could have been built much further out
The new beach is still much smaller than south of the pier
The previous policy of putting rocks against wall and letting groynes fall to pieces didn’t work.
Why was nothing done to change this policy for about 15 years?
On the other hand if previous policy did work why was it changed?
Seawick- St Osyth
In October 2013 the path just south of the groynes looked like this
Looking north
Looking south
In both photos can clearly see properties behind the sea wall
In 2015 path looks like this
It is clear the sea has eroded almost all the sand and mud from in front of the sea wall
And once this has gone the sea will start eroding the sea wall
Eventually there will be a hole in the sea wall and the properties and caravans will be flooded.
This is not guess work, there is the experience from Holland-on-Sea to go by
Sea wall fails
Digger falls through promenade as sea has washed away material from underneath promenade, greatly reducing the promenade’s strength.
Another failure at Seawick
This reef is covered by seaweed, clearly showing it is covered by the sea at high tide – which allows the sea to wash sand on beach away
which it has, compare the level of this beach
with the level just the other side of the groyne to north
not only is there a better beach there is a bank of dry sand in front of the wall, protecting it from the destructive effect of the sea.
This beach is only a few yards from the one where there is a reef and the sand has been washed away.
So the Environment Agency and TDC know exactly how to protect the beach and sea wall, because they’ve done it here.
In October 2013 the foundations of ramp at Seawick was being eroded away
Environment Agency solution is to pile rocks against ramp
This is the solution which didn’t work and has been abandoned a few miles to the north in Clacton and Holland on Sea
I guess the reason the stones are in wire mesh is someone is worried about them being washed away!
At The Naze
Mean while the Naze continues to fall into the sea and the only remedy is to put up a fence!
A view from the beach – Jun 2015 – note the slabs on the sea wall
January 2013 view from the beach, where are the slabs?
It’s not the slabs are behind the vegetation
The slabs and sea wall are at least 10 yards from the cliff
It looks like the sea will soon break through the sea wall here.
There is a sewage works at the Naze when the sea breaks through what will happen to sewage works?
EA solution is to ‘protect’ the sewage works.
In other words they’re going to allow the sea to destroy the existing sea defenses,
and the build new defenses.
Brilliant
The sea and rain continue to erode all of the Naze
The solution is known and has already been implemented in Tendring at Clacton, Holland Frinton and Walton
Naze Cliffs Fall Into Sea Even Though It’s Known How To Stop It
1 Build Groynes
2 Sculpt the cliffs so there is not a sheet vertical drop
3 Drain the cliffs.
It is a strange that at a time when one part of government has ordered Tendring to plan for 10,000 new homes another government agency is planning for lots of Tendring coastline to fall into the sea.