Fight launched to protect shoreline
Another 100 metres to be lost at Brodick beach
New plans to protect Arran’s historic shoreline have been unveiled.
They are contained in a draft shoreline management plan for the Ayrshire and Arran coastline which has been prepared by North Ayrshire and South Ayrshire councils.
A series of consultation events have been arranged to allow people to get a closer look at the plans, with one event coming to Arran on Thursday February 22 in Brodick Library from noon to 6.30pm.
The plan presents a largescale assessment of the risks to the people of Ayrshire and Arran and its historic and natural environment from coastal flooding and erosion, and identifies suitable policies for the management of these risks.
Consultation on the draft plan is now open and will run until April 20, allowing comment on the plan and accompanying reports before they are finalised.
Councillor Jim Montgomerie, cabinet member for place, said: ‘I hope people take time to have a look at the draft plan and offer their own comments.’
Climate change could see the shoreline at Brodick beach eroded by another 100 metres in just 30 years, a new government report has warned.
The report also directly blames the erosion on the ‘ill-advised’ removal of sand from this beach in the 1970s and 1980s. And there’s bad news for Lamlash and Machrie where erosion is likely to have reached the main road through each village by 2050 unless urgent action is taken.
The findings come in Scotland’s National Coastal Change Assessment, a two year study into the erosion around the country’s coast which found nearly a fifth of Scotland’s coastline is at risk.
Now as North Ayrshire Council launch a shoreline consultation, steps that could be taken to mitigate the erosion are to be studied by new research. The next phase of the Dynamic Coast project will use the latest monitoring techniques to map and categorise the resilience of the Scottish coast and identify the links between erosion and flooding.
The initial study used three specific dates to measure coastal erosion starting back in 1890, then 1978 and up to the present day.
The study states: ‘Brodick Bay is approximately 1.5 km long and bisected by the river that exits from Glen Rosa. Behind the sandy beach lies open ground supporting a golf course, and in the south, an access road, car park and playing fields.
‘Almost along its full length, the 1890 Mean High Water Springs (MHWS) line lies well seaward of the current position; up to 70 m in the south of the bay. In 1890 the beach was fronted by a long spit that extended north across the river exit but by 1978 this had retreated landward by 30m.
‘By 2014 the LiDAR line is a further 20m landward so that some 70m has been lost since 1890 in the south. In the north some 30m of recession occurred between 1890 and 1978 and a further 10m to 2014 adds up to 40m of loss 1890-2014. The losses continue in the south with the artificial addition of sand dredged from the replacement pier and fed to the beach in 2016. This sand has subsequently been lost to the north of the river exit which is now accreting as a result.
The report states categorically: ‘The erosion of Brodick beach is directly attributable to the ill-advised removal of sand from this beach in the 1970s and 1980s.
‘Artificial sand bags have been placed at the back of the beach in 2015 as well as a short stubby rock groyne to slow the rate of erosion, to little avail. There are now plans to protect the shore by the insertion of boulder rip rap and groynes. Brodick is notified as a potentially vulnerable area.
‘Using the rates of erosion 1978 to 2014 and projecting them forward to 2050 reveal a substantial length of Brodick Bay to be of concern with 600m of the beach in the north expected to recede by up to 20m. In the south almost 200m may erode inland by up to 15m.
‘The beach in the north is backed by sand dune and the northern part of the golf course, with no buildings under threat. In the south, the beach is backed by the southern part of the golf course as well as a pathway, recreational areas, car park and buildings that will be cause for concern in the future. At the river exit the projected recession of MHWS by 2050 is some 100m inland but this is generated by the fluctuations in the exit of the river and may well be an overestimate that will change over time.’
The study also considers Lamlash Bay to be a potentially vulnerable area. It states: ‘At Lamlash, the 1895 MHWS coincides with the 1978 position showing no real change over that time period. Since 1978 and 2014 however, there has been up to 15m (0.4 m/yr) of recession over the 200m central section of shore that lies between the two river exits.
‘Although the erosion along the Lamlash shore largely affects dune and
recreational land, the projected erosion influenced area does affect two buildings in the extreme south, with several additional buildings and 130m of the A841 road falling within the erosion vicinity zone.’
On the west coast the study also has concerns at Machrie. It states: ‘Two areas at Machrie have shown recession since 1895. In the south, where the river exits, the shore has receded by 25m from 1895 to 1979 and a further 25m to 2014 LiDAR. In the north, at the Machrie golf course,
the MHWS has retreated by 40m between 1895 and 1979 and then by 10m to 2014 over 400m. This is despite coarse gravels being placed on the upper shore at the toe of the vegetated erosional scarp.
‘In the south, there are no assets under threat at the stream exit. In the north at the Machrie golf course, the projected loss by 2050 over 120m of coast is 16m, with the erosion influenced zone extending over 140m and the erosion vicinity to over 240m and 80m inland. The erosion influenced zone includes golf course buildings.
‘Crucially, the only perimeter access road along the west coast of Arran is unprotected, very close to MHWS, and is of potential concern in the future should rates of erosion change.’
The latest stage of the research, led by the Scottish Government and SNH and carried out by the University of Glasgow was launched last month and is funded by CREW (Centre for Expertise in Water). It will focus on specific study sites to forecast future change and erosional damage and also work with stakeholders like local authorities, SEPA and Historic Environment Scotland to develop plans to mitigate these effects.
Cabinet Secretary for the environment, climate change and land reform Roseanna Cunningham said: ‘Rising sea levels, increased coastal erosion and flooding have caused substantial damage to our coastlines and communities over the last few decades and the pace of erosion is increasing. We need to take action now to adapt and adjust to these changes.
‘This research will forecast the extent of damage that could be caused to our precious coastlines through the effects of climate change and will work with communities, local authorities, transport agencies and other planning bodies to develop plans to manage coastal change before it’s too late.’
Scottish Natural Heritage is managing DynamicCoast.com. Chairman Dr Mike Cantlay said: ‘Scotland’s beaches and dunes play a vital role in protecting £13 billion-worth of buildings and roads. That is more than twice that currently protected by seawalls. By their dynamic nature, shifting sand dunes can replenish areas of shoreline; as such they are our natural defences. This ensures that our beaches and dunes can be a natural ally in combating the effects of climate change.
‘And by working with nature at the coast, we can help ease and adapt to climate change impacts – in particular sea level rise and storms.
‘We and our partners in Dynamic Coast are committed to forecasting future risks and highlight where we can help nature to help us build resilience to climate change and ensure existing and future development is secure.’
Dynamic Coast’s Principal Investigator, the University of Glasgow’s Professor Jim Hansom, said: ‘We are now facing decades of future sea level rise and increasing erosion and flooding at the coast, so we need to better understand the increased risk posed by climate change to coastal assets and communities.
‘We need to know whether to adapt, defend or move those coastal assets as well as how social justice might be better incorporated into future policies. Failure to act now will lead to enhanced costs and impacts later.’