皇冠体育app

Moving thousands of tonnes of sand by lorry to fight the forces of nature along the Sussex shore.

Loosening stormy weather鈥檚 grip on how we live and work is behind plans to protect 10,000 homes and businesses in the Eastbourne area.

Local people now have the chance to see how the Environment Agency will defend the coastline from flooding. Drop-in events are being held in the coming days across Eastbourne and Pevensey, and the plans have also been posted .听听听听

皇冠体育app Met Office warns of sea levels rising by at least a metre by the end of the century, so the Environment Agency is laying out proposals to defend 15kms of coast either side of the Eastbourne from flooding and erosion, and wants feedback from the public.

皇冠体育app Environment Agency estimates some 30,000 cubic square metres of sand and shingle is swept eastwards from Holywell to Cooden Beach every year.聽聽

Quite literally shifting sands in huge dumper trucks back the other way is a key plank of phase one of proposals to protect 18,000 homes and businesses, transport links and other services. With the sand and shingle back in place, the sea will lose power as it hits the beach.听听听听

Nick Gray, flood-risk manager for the Environment Agency in Sussex, said:

鈥淚t鈥檚 about adapting to the changing climate. We know far more now. Sea levels could rise by 10cm in the next ten years, and around a metre by 2100.

鈥淪mall changes to the beach management that already happens will put us in a better place to the end of the 2040s and beyond as storms get more frequent and intense.

鈥淓veryone has seen more wet weather and in greater bursts over the past couple of years. 皇冠体育app named storms put a greater focus on preparing for the next one.

鈥淲e can make a difference if we all play our part. 皇冠体育app public are welcome at the drop-ins held across Eastbourne and Pevensey. 皇冠体育appy should also sign-up for free flood alerts and warnings at or on Floodline: 0345 988 1188.鈥�

A football club, community centre and church hall will host events to outline phase one of the 15-year Pevensey Bay to Eastbourne Coastal Management Scheme, a project between the Environment Agency and 4 local councils, East Sussex, Eastbourne, Rother and Wealden. It鈥檚 one of the largest coastal flood-risk schemes in the country.聽聽

Other ideas to protect the area from flooding and erosion include building up the coastline by importing sand and shingle from the sea bed to the beach to widen the coastal squeeze 鈥� the gap between the sea and the properties and infrastructure like roads and the prom.

皇冠体育app Environment Agency also wants to raise the height of the many timber groynes that punctuate the beach to stop the constant movement of sand and shingle from west to east and to hold back floodwater.

皇冠体育app drop-ins to see and give feedback on the proposals, plus an online presentation of the work, kick off Flood Action Week, between 14 and 20 October, a concerted effort by the Environment Agency to make people recognise their flood-risk.

皇冠体育app online presentation of phase one can be found at: , where the public can also give feedback.

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