A council in Norfolk has approved multi-million pound plans to sandscape a stretch of beach in order to protect Bacton Gas Terminal and two villages from the sea.
The Sandscaping scheme will see up to 1.8 million cubic metres of sand placed on to the beaches covering a 5.7km length starting north west of Bacton Gas Terminal and ending to the south east of Walcott.
This would be made up of approximately one million cubic metres in front of Bacton Gas Terminal, and between 0.5 and 0.8 million cubic metres in front of the villages of Bacton and Walcott.
Cost for the project, which was granted planning permission by North Norfolk District Council’s Development Committee, are estimated at between £17m and £22m.
The project is a joint venture between North Norfolk District Council, the Bacton Terminal Operators, the Environment Agency.
The project plans to create significantly bigger beaches, improved beach access and better protection from the sea for the gas terminal and the villages of Bacton and Walcott.
Cllr Sarah Butikofer, leader of North Norfolk District Council, said: “This is an essential piece of work to protect both our Norfolk villages and nationally important infrastructure.
“It is an exciting project that will put North Norfolk on the map for leading the way in innovative technology solutions, tackling climate change on our doorstep.”
Next steps for the project involve the appointment of construction contractor, finalisation of funding, and a licence from the Marine Management Organisation (MMO).
Subject to securing the necessary permissions and consents, works would likely take place over Spring and Summer 2019.
The Bacton gas terminal is four terminals within one, with Perenco, Shell and Eni operating a separate gas reception and processing facility at the site. According to Shell, the Transco Entry Facility provides a direct link to the UK – Continent Interconnector.
Good grief! Have these people no imagination? A few bags of sand are not going to keep the North Sea at bay. You are attempting to control the forces that dug the North Sea in the first place.
It will be interesting to see if BB bids for this after their Happisburgh experiences of the 1990’s.
Where are they taking the sand from?
And what will be the environmental consequences for that location ?