Turnstone: John Maiden discusses declining sea defences in Hunstanton
In this week’s Turnstone column, John Maiden discusses the “damage” being caused due to worsening sea defences in Hunstanton…
A few weeks ago I noticed some people from the borough council surveying the beach in front of Hunstanton's north promenade.
I mentioned to one member of the team that I had helped to build this impressive example of man's desperate attempts to keep back the sea in 1955/56, after the severe damage and loss of life caused by the storm in January 1953.
I pointed out that the concrete groynes were an essential ingredient in making the gracefully curved sea wall withstand the constant battering of waves throughout its lifetime.
I pointed out that because the groynes have been poorly maintained over many years, they are no longer effective in building up and retaining sand.
In fact, because there are large gaps at the base of so many groynes, they are incapable of retaining sand, and are actually having the opposite effect by increasing the amount of sand being washed away.
My words must have fallen on deaf ears, because instead of the damaged groynes being repaired, their effectiveness is being further reduced.
The reason given for embarking on this course of action is because a large sand bank has been formed between Holme and Old Hunstanton which is preventing sand from being washed southwards, thereby recharging our beach.
Old Hunstanton beach itself certainly seems to be even more sandy than ever, which could also be caused by the sand bank, but it is worth noting that the beach benefits from a much more natural method of defending its golf course and seaside properties than Hunstanton does.
Marram grass does a wonderful job when it comes to holding its dunes together, along with sea buckthorn behind them and cabions in front, consisting of large flint stones held together by strong wire.
The cliffs are the only truly natural defence against the sea, with all of Hunstanton's promenade built on top of what used to be the beach; with sand dunes coming right up to the back gardens of properties on Seagate Road, prior to the boating lake opening in 1932.
In fact, the promenade did not go further southwards than The Green until the open-air swimming pool was opened by Miss Mercedes Gleitze in 1928.
Both these wonderful amenities took a severe battering by the sea in 1948, as well as in 1953.
It is also important to note of the extensive damage caused to the Sealife Sanctuary more recently by a tidal surge and gale force winds.
This was after I had warned the borough council about what might happen if it failed to increase the height of the wave wall where it is responsible for sea defences, when the Environment Agency increased the height of the wave wall where it is responsible, to the south of the fairground.
Perhaps the lesson to be learned from these events, and some poor decisions, is that climate change caused by man-made global warming is only going to increase the risk to life and property for the forseeable future.
