Orfordness, beach recharge

There is a constant threat of breaching at Slaughden, at the northern end of the spit, due to coastal and estuarine pressures. At the narrowest point the shingle bar is only some 30 metres wide. Concrete and rock armour, together with wooden groynes, are used as protection as well as an artificially created and maintained shingle sea wall. This shingle wall is itself subject to major erosion each year, particularly when strong north-easterly gales coincide with storm surges. It can be reduced significantly in a very short period of time, sometimes even overnight. In the winter of 1997 it was eroded from its normal 13 metres width down to only 1.5 metres.

Caption: Northern boundary of the National Trust reserve, looking south. The shingle beach to the left is periodically excavated and moved to the north to reinforce the beach at Slaughden. See Orfordness Summary for location.

In order to maintain the wall at the required width, the EA has in the past removed shingle from the foreshore adjacent to the southern end of Lantern Marsh and hauled it northwards for use as beach replenishment at the Slaughden sea defences. This practice is under review, as there is concern that the process is damaging and disturbing to the site, coastal processes and wildlife. Information taken from the National Trust web site @ http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/orfordness/. A scoping study by Halcrow consulting engineers for the Environment Agency in 2002 suggested mitigation for damage should the process continue could include restoration involving: raking recent vehicle tracks; artificially re-grading shingle; re-seeding to encourage colonisation.

Comment: This site is one of several dealt with in more detail in the "Guide to the management and restoration of coastal vegetated shingle " where it is included as Annex 06.