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Public consultation on coastal strategy
Public consultation
will begin shortly on a blueprint that sets out how the coastline
between Whitby and Cloughton will be managed over the next 100
years.
Scarborough Borough Council, with the
assistance of the Environment Agency, has produced a draft of the
Robin Hood’s Bay Coastal Strategy study which outlines how
communities and the environment along the 24km of coastline will be
protected.
The council recommends “holding the line”
in lower Robin Hood’s Bay, which means existing coastal defences
will either be maintained or upgraded. That is likely to cost in
the region of £900,000, with work scheduled to be carried out over
the next five years.
In other areas the council will allow
nature to take its course, with a handful of cliff top properties
and infrastructure potentially at risk of disappearing over the
course of the next century.
A public consultation event is due to take
place on 19 January at the Robin Hood’s Bay Methodist Church Hall,
subject to cabinet approval, which will allow people to view the
study, ask questions and make comments.
Fylingdales councillor Jane Mortimer said:
“This study, which was 100 per cent grant funded, is a major piece
of work that will set policy on how coastal issues between the Abby
Cliffs in Whitby and Hundale Point in Cloughton are dealt with in
the coming years.
“I welcome the draft study and the
importance that is clearly placed on Robin Hood’s Bay. The village
is a significant tourist attraction in the borough because of its
unspoilt nature and it’s important homes and businesses are
protected there for many years to come.
“I hope as many people as possible will
attend the event so local views can be heard and fed into the
consultation process.”
Robin Hood’s Bay has had a long history of
coastal erosion problems. In 1780 much of the original road into
the village – Kings Street – was lost. And since 1780, more than
200 properties have been lost as a consequence of cliff top
recession.
In 1975, vertical concrete sea walls, 14
metres high and anchored into the cliff were built to prevent
erosion along “The Landing” – a section of cliff located between
the village slipway and Ground Wyke Hole.
With the eroding cliff edge just two metres
away from the only access road to the lower part of the village,
the borough council commissioned consultants in 1996 to evaluate
the problem and identify suitable coast protection measures.
The study, which extended from the Victoria
Hotel Mount Pleasant southwards to The Quarterdeck, was completed
in 1999 and, based on recommendations, coast protection works
between Ground Wyke Hole and Mount Pleasant were carried out during
2000 and 2001.
The most significant findings of the 1999
study was the high rate of erosion and the outflanking and the
sequential risk to existing coastal defence assets.
Although the recent coast protection works
have addressed the issue for the lower part of the village, the
upper part of the village, north of the Victoria Hotel Mount
Pleasant, is undefended and remains at potential risk.
The public consultation event at the
Methodist Church Hall is due to run from 3pm until 9pm to allow as
many people as possible to attend.
Draft display boards, a presentation and
copies of the draft strategy will be available on the day. The
council’s consultants, as well as officers, will be available to
answer questions about the strategy.
It will also be available to view and
download from the council’s consultation webpage www.scarborough.gov.uk/default.aspx?page=12886
and consultation leaflets will also be distributed to help
feedback.
Consultation, which runs until 19 April,
will also be sought with all statutory consultees, such as the
Environment Agency and Natural England.
If you have any questions, contact coastal officer Robin Siddle
at Scarborough Borough Council on 01723 232448 or email: robin.siddle@scarborough.gov.uk