East Head

- Wed 14th Dec 2005

East Head: The Latest Statement

In July 2005, short-term works were undertaken by Conservancy and Chichester District Council to repair the breach in the sand dunes at the Hinge on East Head. This was only a temporary solution and the following position for the future has been agreed by the East Head Working Party.

The Short Term
Repair of the breach involved recycling some 16,000 tons of sand and shingle from the northern end of East Head and returning it to whence it came at the Hinge. This was a short-term measure designed to retain access onto East Head for walkers at all stages of the tide and to hold the line until such time as a longer-term solution for East Head can be agreed. It also helped to maintain navigation in the harbour by keeping the channels clear.

It is not known how long the recharged material will stay in place and the persistent Autumn storms of 2005 took a heavy toll, although it is about 70% intact. Nor is it known when we are likely to see a long term solution emerging from the Coastal Defence Strategy. Accordingly, another recharge will probably be required and the Conservancy are working with National Trust – the owners of East Head, the District Council, English Nature and others to determine the trigger point for the next recharge, which is likely to be sometime between now and mid 2007.

Long Term
Funding for a long term solution for East Head is unlikely to come from Central Government sources (DEFRA) and any scheme must be coherent with the Coastal Defence Strategy.

Owing to the environmental designations that apply to the whole of Chichester Harbour, it is most unlikely that extensive hard engineering (rocks, groynes, gabions etc) to protect East Head will, on the advice of English Nature, be permitted by Central Government and will, therefore, be ruled out as an option in the Coastal Defence Strategy.

Sand dunes and shingle banks in a maritime environment are ephemeral features and without hard engineering they will change in size, shape and orientation and may be lost entirely. It follows that change at East Head is inevitable and if the feature looks like being lost, other means of maintaining its value need to be found. For instance, beach management of adjacent coastline to improve sediment flow into the Hinge and the longer term recycling of material may provide a way of maintaining the feature for perhaps a generation (20-25 years).

Against this background, the Conservancy has sought to inform the Coastal Defence Strategy and has submitted its 'Position Statement' and 'Required Outcome' to the Strategy Steering Group.

The Conservancy's Required Outcome
It is the statutory function of the Chichester Harbour Conservancy to 'take steps from time to time as to them seem meet for conservancy, maintenance and improvement of:
a) The Harbour, for the use of pleasure craft and such other vessels as may seek to use the same.
b) The Amenity Area (AONB), for the occupation of leisure and recreation and the conservation of nature, and the facilities (including in relation to the Harbour, navigational facilities) afforded respectively therein or in connection therewith'

To this end, the Conservancy will seek to maintain and protect the special qualities of East Head as a significant dunes feature and to prevent the adverse impacts that its loss will have on the wider harbour. Namely that the evolution of East Head should not:

Harbour
- prejudice navigation by causing sedimentation in the main navigable channels.
- result in the loss of the sheltered anchorage and the shelter provided to small vessels in the Chichester Channel.
AONB
- contribute to increased erosion of existing fragile footpaths.
- result in the loss of the amenity value of East Head for walkers, bathers etc as currently provided by the dunes system.
- result in the net loss of habitats designated under the Habitats Regulations.

The Conservancy do wish to seek a sustainable and economically viable solution for the long term maintenance of East Head. Accordingly, it is accepted that:
- the feature may change in size, shape and orientation.
- some managed realignment may be appropriate.
- hard engineering should be kept to the minimum necessary to achieve the desired outcome.
- recycling of material may be necessary if there is insufficient sediment in the system because of sea defences elsewhere.
- the life of the scheme may be less than 25 years and may not stand a 1:100 year event.
- there will be a need to review, from time to time, any strategy adopted.

We await the publication of the Consultation Document for the Coastal Defence Strategy due out in early 2006. The challenge will remain one of finding a scheme that actually works; that the owners and regulators - National Trust, English Nature, Environment Agency and District Council - will accept; and that the community is prepared to fund from its own resources.

We may need to seek your support for the Conservancy's position and this will be done through our eNewsletter.

Ali Beckett
Publicity & Information Officer

Chichester Harbour Conservancy
Harbour Office
Itchenor
Chichester
PO20 7AW
T: 01243 512301
W: www.conservancy.co.uk
E: harbourmaster@conservancy.co.uk

By forum user, HIbot