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introduction

in The Environment Agency has undertaken a review of how we manage the coastline between Folkestone and Cliff End, with input from a number of organisations. The final Folkestone to Cliff End Flood and Erosion Management Strategy sets out our plan to manage flood and erosion risks along this coastline. The final strategy was approved by the Environment Agency, Rother District Council, and Shepway District Council. This booklet summarises the final approved strategy. Through this strategy we have identified ways to protect over 20,000 residential and non residential properties that are at risk of flooding and erosion over the next 100 years. We propose to implement five priority schemes to complete the chain of defences within the strategy area. We also plan to continue maintaining the existing defences. Funding, however, is not guaranteed and we will seek contributions from key beneficiaries to increase the likelihood of these priority schemes being eligible for government funding. This strategy takes into account: • a predicted increase in sea level rise due to climate change; • the need to evaluate options over the long term; • the impacts of implementation on the natural environment; • the Beachy Head to South Foreland Shoreline Management Plan; • the responses to our public consultation carried out in 2008. Our final strategy incorporates information and comments provided by you during our consultation. Comments from local communities were generally supportive of the proposed option for each frontage, and there was a desire for works to be accelerated where possible. The responses from the public also highlighted the importance of local expertise in the development of strategies and schemes. Views from Natural England and English Heritage on how our strategy impacts the natural environment and archaeology in the area have also been taken into account during the development of the strategy and both organisations support our approved options.

introduction Dymchurch

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The strategy area contains a large expanse of low lying land including the Walland and Romney Marshes with 25,000 hectares of agricultural land at risk of flooding. The area includes many residential and commercial developments as well as important local infrastructure, such as roads, railway lines, an airport and two nuclear power stations. If we don’t do anything to manage flood risk, over 16,700 homes could be at risk of flooding or impossible to access within 10 to 15 years. An additional 1,100 properties are at risk from erosion on the coastline and cliffs in the east of the Strategy area. This strategy covers a number of areas that are environmentally important. The Dungeness Special Area of Conservation (SAC) and Dungeness, Romney Marsh and Rye Bay Special Protection Area (SPA) form part of a network of internationally designated sites known as the ‘Natura 2000 network’. The Dungeness SAC is the most important site in the UK for internationally rare shingle habitat and has a significant influence on coastal management within the strategy area. The Dungeness, Romney Marsh and Rye Bay SPA is designated to protect the habitats of threatened species of birds. The UK has a legal obligation to conserve these sites. National designations include Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and a National Nature Reserve (NNR) designated to protect sensitive wildlife habitats and geological features. The strategy area also contains a wealth of archaeological heritage and is important for tourism and recreation.

strategy area

Lydd Ranges

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Folkestone to Cliff End Strategy map

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who is involved in managing this coastline?

Broomhill Sands

The Operating Authorities for managing flood and erosion risk within the Folkestone to Cliff End strategy area are the Environment Agency, Shepway District Council, the Ministry of Defence and British Energy. The Environment Agency has permissive powers that allow us to protect both people and property where economically, technically and environmentally viable and where affordable within national budgets. Generally we have no legal duty on us to build and maintain coastal defences. In April 2008, the Environment Agency became responsible for overseeing the management of all flood and coastal erosion risk in England. Under the new arrangements the Environment Agency now: • takes the lead for managing coastal flooding risk in England; • ensures that sustainable long-term Shoreline Management Plans are in place for our coastline and approves them on behalf of Defra. (This coastline is covered by the Beachy Head to South Foreland Shoreline Management Plan); • allocates flood and coastal erosion risk management capital funding. The local authorities will continue to deliver their coastal erosion role as before, but now under the Environment Agency’s overarching management. The Environment Agency and local authorities are working hard to ensure that we deliver this new way of working in a true partnership approach. We work with other organisations, such as Natural England, to understand what effect our strategy will have on the local environment.

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strategy development

For each frontage we have assessed flood and erosion risk management options, using technical, economic, social and environmental criteria. For each option we have considered: • how it would address flood and erosion risk to people and properties; • whether it would work for the short, medium or long term considering the effects of predicted sea level rise; • the cost of the defences and the value of damage avoided by providing such defences; • how it would be built or maintained; • how it would impact on people who live in, work in and visit the area; • the effect it would have on the natural environment.

Management Option

Description

No active intervention

Let nature take its course – no work will be carried out to maintain or repair defences, allowing them to deteriorate over time.

Active intervention to hold the line – by maintain, sustain or improve

Maintain – defences are maintained as they are but as sea levels rise, flood and erosion risk increases over time. Sustain – defences are raised and strengthened keeping the levels of flood and erosion risk the present day. Improve – defences are improved to increase the standard of protection over time, beyond the requirements of rising sea levels.

Managed realignment

Improve coastal stability by managing and moving coastal defences to a more sustainable location further inland.

Adaptive management

Managing complex areas by monitoring changes and acting on them in a planned but flexible way, increasing our understanding over time.

For many frontages our final option is to hold the line by improving or sustaining the current standard of defence against flood and erosion. In other parts of the strategy area where existing defences provide a good standard of protection, less work is needed.

The options were finalised after widespread consultation and review by local authorities, and the Environment Agency. Now that they are approved, the schemes will need to qualify for national funding. They will be ranked against other nationally submitted proposals for flood and erosion risk management and funding will be allocated on a priority basis. We want communities to help in the design of flood risk management schemes to maximise the local benefits and we will seek feedback again when we are in a position to develop the options further.

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what we plan to do

Implementation Plan

Frontage Approved strategy option

Planned work (subject to funding)

Rye Harbour Farm (River Rother West Bank)

local realignment (habitat creation)

Creation of intertidal habitat to fulfil legal obligations

Rother Tidal Walls East (River Rother East Bank)

Hold the line – sustain with local realignment

Raise defences Realign a short section of the defences

Broomhill Sands Hold the line – Improve

Construct rock revetment Beach nourishment and groynes in the west

Lydd Ranges Hold the line – Improve

Beach nourishment Groynes in the west Reinforcing of earth bank Improve standard of protection at Denge Marsh Sewer

Romney Sands (previously named Greatsone)

Hold the line – Improve

Beach nourishment

High Knocke to Dymchurch Town

Hold the line – Improve

Construct concrete revetment

Hythe Ranges Hold the line – Improve

Construct rock revetment Beach nourishment at Fishermans Beach

Works at Rye Harbour Farm (River Rother West Bank) and High Knocke to Dymchurch are underway. There is currently no funding to begin other works until after the current Spending Review period in 2015. Flood risk will be managed through on-going maintenance activities in the interim. For these schemes we will produce a Business Case which will look in detail at the costs and benefits and how to protect as many properties as we can economically justify. It will determine what materials to build any new defences from, what they will look like, the exact alignment and how high they need to be. Broomhill Sands has been progressed ahead of the other schemes and the Business Case has already been completed. This strategy does not guarantee funding for these planned works. Please see page 15 to read about how funding is allocated.

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The low lying land behind the River Rother west bank contains many homes and commercial properties in and around Rye and internationally designated nature conservation areas. The low lying land behind the River Rother east bank includes the Walland and Romney Marshes which contain many of the 16,700 homes in the strategy area that are at risk of flooding. Earth embankments and walls along the west and east banks of the river currently provide defence against flooding. The defences along the east bank are in poor condition and require work to reduce the risk of a breach. A tidal exchange system is being constructed at Rye Harbour Farm to create new salt marsh and mudflat habitat. This will help to off set habitat losses within the strategy area caused by rising sea levels over the 100 year lifetime of the strategy. This new wetland area is shown in pink on the map below to the left.

Approved Strategy Option Hold the line – improve - local realignment Improve the standard of protection along the east bank by enlarging earth embankments Upgrade defences on the west bank in approximately 50 years to combat sea level rise Realign a short section of the defences immediately south of the A259 on the east bank. This will enhance the conservation interests of the river habitat and reduce erosion of the flood defences. Areas of inter-tidal habitat will be created at Rye Harbour Farm on the West bank.

River Rother west bank, east bank and Rye Harbour arm

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Cliff End to Rye Harbour arm

Cliff End, Winchelsea Beach, Rye and Rye Harbour are significant towns and villages. They are also important for tourism and commercial activities. The area contains a diverse range of habitats and is important for breeding and over-wintering birds. The coastline east of Winchelsea Beach is a natural shingle beach with relic shingle ridges. We have already improved the flood defences along this section by constructing new timber groynes at Winchelsea Beach and Cliff End as well as placing shingle on the beach. An earth embankment has been built between Winchelsea Beach and Rye Harbour to form a secondary defence behind the shingle beach. This flood defence scheme has a design life of 50 years

Approved Strategy Option Hold the line - sustain Sustain the defences over the second 50 years of the strategy by constructing timber groynes between Cliff End and Winchelsea Beach. Raise and strengthen the secondary defence between Winchelsea Beach and Rye Harbour if required

The Royal Military Canal has an important role in controlling water levels in the Walland and Romney Marshes. Certain sections of the canal are listed as scheduled monuments for their historic value. Parts of the canal are designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest and an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The grassed banks of the canal provide a suitable standard of defence and there are a series of sluices which prevent coastal water entering the canal.

Approved Strategy Option Hold the line – Do Minimum (Maintain) Maintain by monitoring the condition of the existing banks and sluices and carrying out repairs where necessary.

Royal Military Canal

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Camber Sands

Camber is important for its tourism and recreation facilities. Parts of this section are within the Dungeness, Romney Marsh and Rye Bay Special Protection Area (SPA) and the Camber sand dunes are of national conservation importance. The dunes provide flood protection along much of this section and in the east there are timber groynes. Approved Strategy Option Hold the line – Do Minimum (Maintain) Monitoring the condition of the dunes, installing fencing to protect sensitive areas and maintaining the timber groynes.

Broomhill Sands Much of this area is around one metre below high spring tide levels and without defences it would be at risk of regular flooding. The beach here attracts large numbers of visitors in the summer and is popular for water sports. There is a sea wall along much of this section, buried by a shingle beach with groynes. At Broomhill car park there is no sea wall. Here the defence comprises the beach and the wide shingle bank that forms the car park. Approved Strategy Option Hold the line – Improve Improve the standard of protection by constructing a rock revetment with a promenade along the top and steps to allow access to the beach. Renew the groynes and replenish shingle over a 700 metre section at the Camber end.

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The low lying land behind the defences includes the Walland and Romney Marshes, residential properties and the MoD Lydd Ranges. This frontage lies within the Dungeness Special Area of Conservation (SAC) which contains rare vegetated shingle habitats. Here there is a secondary earth embankment (the Green Wall) fronted by a shingle beach.

Approved Strategy Option Hold the line – Improve Improve the standard of protection by reinforcing the Green Wall and placing shingle on the beach. Construct new groynes at the western end to stabilise the beach and prevent it eroding back to the Green Wall. This option is expensive and funding in the future will be hard to justify. Lower cost alternatives may need to be investigated in the future.

There are two nuclear power stations on this section and these require a high standard of protection. until both stations are fully decommissioned. The defences here are managed by British Energy on behalf of Dungeness A and B stations. Shingle sourced locally is placed on the beach and profiled to form a large embankment. The Denge Marsh Sewer is a channel to the west of the power stations that drains the Denge Marsh. Approved Strategy Options Maintain the standard of protection at the Dungeness Power Stations in the short to medium term. Adaptive Management as the power stations are decommissioned over the 100 year strategy period. Adaptive Management of the Denge Marsh Sewer outfall in response to beach position. Construction of a low level secondary defence between the channel and the power stations.

Lydd Ranges

Dungeness power stations

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This section contains residential properties at Dungeness and Lydd-on-sea, a local fishing industry and tourist attractions. The area is within the Dungeness Special Area of Conservation and Dungeness National Nature Reserve. There are no managed flood defences along this section. The shingle beaches build up naturally as the longshore drift supplies shingle from the southern shore to provide an adequate standard of protection. Approved Strategy Option – No active intervention Monitor the beach levels to ensure that the flood risk remains low.

This section contains Greatstone Beach which is a popular visitor attraction and residential properties at Greatstone-on-Sea. The coastline here is designated as a local landscape area and is within the Dungeness Special Area of Conservation (SAC). The dunes at Greatstone are high and, in combination with the shingle beach, provide an appropriate standard of defence. At Romney Sands, the shingle beach crest is lower and there is a greater risk of flooding. Approved Strategy Options – Hold the line – Maintain/Improve Maintain the standard of protection at Greatstone by erecting fencing to protect the dunes Improve the standard of protection at Romney Sands by adding shingle to the beach, with minor works to reduce the risk of an outfall blocking.

Dungeness power stations to Greatstone

Greatstone to Romney Sands

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Littlestone to St Mary’s The defences between Littlestone-on-Sea and St Mary’s protect residential properties, the Walland and Romney Marshes and local tourism attractions and amenities. We completed a coastal defence scheme here in 2004 which included shingle nourishment, new groynes and improvements to the seawall. The scheme has a design life of 50 years and provides an appropriate standard of protection. Approved Strategy Option – Hold the line - Sustain Sustain the current defences when they reach the end of their design life by raising the seawall if necessary and adding further shingle to the beach.

St Mary’s Bay The defences along St Mary’s Bay consist of concrete steps, linked to a wide promenade with a concrete wall at the rear. Timber groynes along the beach help to keep shingle in place. These defences have a remaining design life of around 40 years and provide an appropriate standard of defence. Approved Strategy Option – Hold the line - Improve Improve the standard of protection when defences reach the end of their design life by upgrading the seawall if necessary and adding further shingle to the beach.

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High Knocke to Dymchurch Dymchurch is a busy seaside resort and local commercial centre. The low lying land here contains residential properties, caravan and camping parks and the Walland and Romney Marshes. There are two sections to the defences. A scheme is underway from the south of Dymchurch to the Martello Tower consisting of a concrete revetment. The defences from the Martello tower to the Dymchurch Redoubt have been improved recently and consist of a rock revetment and new seawall. Approved Strategy Option – Hold the line - Improve Improve the existing defences by constructing a concrete revetment from the south of Dymchurch to the Martello Tower

Hythe Ranges This section is between Dymchurch Redoubt and Hythe. The coastline here consists of a shingle embankment partly protected by a rock revetment. There are also a number of timber groynes which are in poor condition. The area immediately behind is a MoD firing range. The risk of flooding here is high and there is low lying land behind the defences. Approved Strategy Option – Hold the line - Improve Improve the existing defences by constructing a rock revetment

Hythe to Folkestone Harbour Hythe, Sandgate and Folkestone are significant towns with numerous residential properties and are important for tourism and commerce. This section is at risk from both flooding and erosion. The flood risk extends from Hythe to Sandgate. From Sandgate to Folkestone the land is higher but at risk of erosion. Shepway District Council have recently improved the seawalls, constructed a number of rock structures and added shingle to the beach. The defences here have a design life of 50 years. Approved Strategy Option – Hold the line – Maintain / Improve Maintain existing standard of protection through annual shingle recycling. Improve the defences when they have reached the end of their design life by carrying out works to the promenade where necessary and raising beach levels.

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Implementing this flood and erosion risk management strategy depends on the availability of funding from central government and other sources. To help us to do more to manage flood and coastal erosion risks we will look for contributions from private, public or voluntary organisations or communities who will benefit the most from our work. By reducing our costs, a contribution will help to improve the chances of the work happening. In addition, a contribution may also fund additional work to increase the level of protection over those which we would otherwise have delivered. Sources of contributions may include infrastructure levies, Section 106 funding under the Town and Planning Act (1990) and precepts at parish council level, as well as contributions from local commercial interests which will benefit directly from a reduction in flood risk.

funding for flood and erosion risk management

River Rother at Rye

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This final strategy and the Strategic Environmental Assessment Post Adoption Statement were published in April 2011 and can be found on the following Environment Agency website: www.environment-agency.gov.uk/folkestonecliffend Updates on the Environment Agency's progress on implementing this strategy can be found on this site.

where can I find out more?

Camber Sands

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Would you like to find out more about the Environment Agency? Then call us on 08708 506 506 (Mon – Fri 8-6) email

enquiries@environment-agency.gov.uk or visit our website

www.environment-agency.gov.uk incident hotline 0800 80 70 60 (24 hrs) floodline 0845 988 1188