Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2016-03-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 22 February 2016 to Question 27122, what assessment has been made of the effectiveness of the Christchurch Beach Replenishment Scheme; and what assessment has been made of the quantity of material used to re-establish coast protection which is still in place.
Rory Stewart
Christchurch Borough Council are the Risk Management Authority responsible for this section of coast and commissioned the Christchurch Beach Replenishment Scheme in early summer 2015. They conduct monthly visual inspections of beach condition. Regular surveys are also carried out on behalf of all Coastal Authorities to assess volume changes through the South-East Region Coastal Monitoring Programme.
The quantity of material used to restore the beach was recorded by contractors and independently confirmed by pre and post works survey to be 25,000m3 which exceeded the design quantity.
Christchurch Borough Council reports that the re-nourished beach has shown a normal response to winter storm events, with material moving between groyne embayments, and expected losses occurring from the top of the beach to the nearshore area. Reports also conclude that the beach nourishment work undertaken reduced the vulnerability of the sea wall foundations and promenades to collapse.
