Christchurch coastal protection and maintenance works are planned for May 2021 and are scheduled to take up to six weeks.
Works involve:
- beach recycling in four groyne bays between Avon and Friars Cliff beaches and Highcliffe beach
- rock groyne reshaping and groyne beacon post repairs across all beaches from Mudeford Sandbank and Avon beach to Highcliffe, where required
- reinforcing Steamer Point path with additional rock armour.
Matt Hosey Head of Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management BCP Council said:
“Our monitoring programme shows that beach levels across Christchurch have generally remained healthy since 2003. Part of the works involve topping-up depleted beach areas by recycling and re-distributing local material, as well as realigning and re-shaping a number of rock groynes. The beach and groynes work together to protect the seawall and areas behind it from erosion by the sea.”
Contractor Mackley Civil Engineering has been appointed to carry out works on behalf of BCP Council and will be on-site setting up compound areas from Tuesday 4 May 2021. As with previous coastal maintenance, our contractor will work with the most suitable tide levels. This means they could work at any time of the day, night or at weekends. It is estimated that this maintenance work will take up to six weeks, three weeks on the Highcliffe to Avon Beach areas and three weeks at Mudeford Sandbank.
The promenade, beaches and access routes will remain open for the duration of the works. However, heavy machinery will be operating on the seafront using agreed routes to avoid damage to mature dunes at the top of the beach. The eastern end of Highcliffe beach (under Cliffhanger Café) will be used to store all the additional rock armour needed for the groyne and path repairs.
Beach users during this time are asked to adhere to any on-site signage and to avoid areas where works are in progress for safety reasons.
