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Minehead to Blue Anchor

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Minehead to Blue Anchor Hartland Point to Anchor Head SMP2 Shoreline Management Plan Location reference: Minehead to Blue Anchor Policy unit reference: 7d19 to 7d23 Summary of preferred plan recommendations and justification Plan: This statement covers the coastline from Minehead Harbour to the eastern end of Blue Anchor Bay. It incorporates the large commercial and residential centre of Minehead, as well as the smaller resorts of Dunster Beach and Blue Anchor. The long term plan for this area is to continue to minimise flood risk to Minehead, including that from The Warren to Ker Moor frontage, whilst achieving a more sustainable defence line along the adjacent frontages to the east. This will involve continuing to maintain an adequate level of protection to Minehead with provision of a set-back defence along the adjacent frontages. It is expected that any realigned position would have to be seaward of, or incorporate in some way, the West Somerset Railway in order that this resource of value to the economy of the area is retained; to relocate or realign the railway is unlikely to be feasible. At Blue Anchor it will increasingly become technically difficult to maintain the present defences. As these reach the end of their effective life replacement is unlikely to attract public funds from the flood and coastal defence budget. Therefore in the long term there will be a move towards a no intervention policy. The plan will both provide long term protection to the majority of shoreline assets, whilst affording potential habitat gains through implementation of managed realignment. There would be potential for impacts on the golf course and also some shoreline assets, depending upon the location of the set back defences. The timing of providing a set back defence will vary along the shoreline and will require investigation to determine the most appropriate realignments. Preferred policies to implement plan: From present day (short The policy for the Minehead, The Warren, Dunster Beach and Blue Anchor term): frontages is to hold the line during this period. This will involve maintenance of existing defences, but some will need to be replaced with larger structures to ensure they provide adequate levels of protection in the longer term. As part of this policy it is assumed that privately funded management activities on Dunster Beach would continue, provided that they continue to have a minimal effect upon the down-drift coast. In order to reduce the risk of ‘back door’ flooding to Minehead from The Warren/Dunster Beach/Ker Moor frontage, a secondary defence line would be constructed in this period. Study is required to assess possible options for this and will need to consider issues of fluvial flooding behind any secondary defence line, implications for the River Avill flood relief channel, and the impact of groynes at Minehead and Dunster Beach on longshore drift patterns. In the short to medium term this would form a secondary defence line, but in the longer term could become the primary defence line as continued defence of The Warren and Dunster Beach frontages becomes increasingly unsustainable along existing alignments. Opportunities for longer term realignment of this frontage should be investigated as part of the detailed study, including the effects of the potential release of beach building sediment from erosion of The Warren. Whilst these studies are undertaken, measures should be put in place to manage the risk of a breach along The Warren. Along Ker Moor the policy is managed realignment, implemented through construction of a secondary defence embankment in line with that proposed at The Warren and Dunster Beach. Investigations would be required to define the appropriate realignment which will need to consider continued protection of the West Somerset Railway. If defences at the eastern end of Blue Anchor are not upgraded they will fail and expose this area to the risk of increased cliff recession. This would occur The above provides the local details in respect of the SMP-wide policy presented in the preceding sections of this Plan document. These details must be read in the context of the wider-scale issues and policy implications, as reported therein. 159 Hartland Point to Anchor Head SMP2 Shoreline Management Plan at rates similar to those on the adjacent undefended coast, with potential for recession of up to 50m along any part of the cliffed frontage during this period and could impact upon the B3191 road (that is protected by new defences along the rest of Blue Anchor). As the plan along the whole SMP frontage is to conserve this road in the short and medium term at least, then new defences under the hold the line policy may have to be constructed to reduce the risk of cliff recession occurring and impacting upon the road here. If constructed, these new defences are likely to have to extend eastwards for a short distance. Medium term: The policy along this frontage is to hold the line of either the existing or newly constructed set back defences. This will be implemented through ongoing maintenance of the defences and beach management, which may require some of the groynes at Minehead to be re-built, together with additional beach recharge. Along The Warren and Dunster Beach frontage it may increasingly become technically difficult to sustain the existing defence line through continuation of embankment maintenance and beach management. If this becomes unsustainable during this period then the policy here would change to one of managed realignment. The secondary defence line constructed in the short term would then become the primary flood defence line along this frontage. Here, the fronting areas would be allowed to flood and erode landwards, potentially allowing a salt marsh and intertidal habitat to develop in front of the defence, which could have both habitat and defence benefits. There may also be release of additional beach material from erosion of The Warren, which could benefit this and down-drift frontages. Longer term: The long term policy along the majority of this section is to hold the line. At Minehead this will involve ongoing maintenance and eventual construction of larger defences. At Ker Moor, the set back defence constructed in the preceding periods would be maintained although armouring of this structure may be required to resist wave damage. Defences may also need to be constructed to protect the railway line at the western end of Blue Anchor, depending upon decisions made regarding the protection of the railway along the rest of the frontage. If not already occurred in the medium term, then it is probable that the change in policy to managed realignment will take place along The Warren and Dunster Beach frontage. At Blue Anchor itself the defences would be maintained for as long as technically viable to do so. However, as these reach the end of their effective life they will fail. Replacement defences are unlikely to attract public funds from the flood and coastal defence budget, so maintenance would be withdrawn and policy would change to no active intervention. Alternative routes to the B3191 are readily available to link Blue Anchor and Chapel Cleeve and these may need to be developed as a result of the policy here. There will be impacts on residential properties and associated infrastructure and facilities, therefore measures will need to be in place to manage this change in policy. The above provides the local details in respect of the SMP-wide policy presented in the preceding sections of this Plan document. These details must be read in the context of the wider-scale issues and policy implications, as reported therein. 160 Hartland Point to Anchor Head SMP2 Shoreline Management Plan Summary of specific policies Preferred policies Policy unit Short term Medium term Long term Maintain and improve the Maintain and further Maintain and further existing defences to improve the existing improve the existing continue to provide defences to continue defences to continue 7d19 Minehead protection to Minehead, protection for Minehead, protection for Minehead, through a hold the line through a hold the line through a hold the line policy. policy. policy. Continue to provide Continue to provide protection by replacing protection by maintaining and maintaining embankment defences As it becomes embankment defences along existing alignment, unsustainable to maintain along existing alignment, possibly supported by defence along the existing possibly supported by The Warren beach recycling and alignment, move to a beach recycling and 7d20 (Minehead Golf replenishment, under a policy of managed replenishment, under a Course) policy of hold the line. realignment, whereby policy of hold the line. Maintain the secondary the secondary defence Investigate and construct a defence embankment line becomes the primary secondary defence inland to protect defence line. embankment inland to Minehead against flood protect Minehead against risk. flood risk. Continue to provide Continue to provide As it becomes protection through beach protection through beach unsustainable to maintain management under a management under a defence along the existing policy of hold the line. policy of hold the line. alignment, move to a 7d21 Dunster Beach Investigate and construct a Maintain the secondary policy of managed secondary defence defence embankment realignment, whereby embankment inland to inland to protect the secondary defence protect Minehead against Minehead against flood line becomes the primary flood risk. risk. defence line. Investigate and implement Hold the line of the Dunster Beach construction of set-back Hold the line of the realigned defence through 7d22 (east) to Ker defence embankment realigned defence through continued maintenance Moor under a policy of continued maintenance. and improvement. managed realignment. Maintain the existing seawall and rock Allow natural coastal revetment defences, and evolution to occur by replace defences at the Maintain the defences to moving towards a policy eastern end near the Blue continue protection of no active 7d23 Blue Anchor Anchor Hotel.
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