EA Hosts Public Meeting on Broomhill Sands Coastal Defence (UK)

The Environment Agency is hosting a public drop-in session in Camber to update the community on the new Broomhill Sands Coastal Defence Scheme, which has recently secured the funding needed to be built.

When built, the Broomhill Sands Defence Scheme will directly protect over 1,400 homes and businesses by increasing the standard of protection in the area from 1 in 20 years, to 1 in 200 years.

The project will feature a range of improvements covering 2.4km of beach between The Suttons, Camber, and the western boundary of Lydd Ranges; including:

– a rock revetment along 1.7km of the beach with new access points;

– replacing a number of the timber groynes;

– a new wave wall;

– increasing the amount of shingle along the beach near the Suttons;

– improving access to the beach and landscaping around the car park.

The Environment Agency is preparing to submit a planning application to Rother District Council, and following earlier work with local residents that helped shape the scheme to ensure it meets local needs, the local community are again invited to give their input to and help inform the final landscaping work.

Local residents and interested groups have the chance to find out more about the proposed scheme at the public meeting, which will be held at Camber Village Hall on Tuesday 1 October between 12.30pm and 9pm.

The defences are the latest part of the Environment Agency’s strategy to reduce flood risk to over 14,000 homes on the Romney Marsh, and will work in conjunction with the already completed schemes at Dymchurch and the mouth of the River Rother, and those still in development along the coast.

Ian Nunn, Environment Agency Operations Manager, said: “The feedback we received from the local community during the early stages of the project was vital in developing the scheme to ensure that it would meet local needs. We want to continue that good work by working closely with the community during the next stage of the project, so I would encourage local residents to come along and talk to us at the meeting.”

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Press Release, September 25, 2013