The Environment Agency’s Lincolnshire Beach Management scheme gets underway on 13 May, helping the Environment Agency manage coastal flood risk to around 20,000 homes and businesses, 24,500 static caravans, 35,000 hectares of land as well as a thriving tourist industry.

Over the course of the £7 million Lincolnshire Beach Management (LBM) scheme, the EA’s contractors will pump around 400,000 cubic metres of sand onto Lincolnshire’s beaches. The sand helps to protect people and their properties from coastal flood risk by preventing damage to the sea defences along the coast and reducing the risk of overtopping. The added sand acts as a buffer between the sea and the defences, taking out the brunt of the wave energy, thereby extending the life span of the defences.

The EA has carried out the works to restoring sand levels that are naturally lost to the sea since 1994.

Over the next six weeks, beaches at Trusthorpe, Mablethorpe, Ingoldmells, Trunch Lane, Wolla Bank, Chapel Six Marshes and Huttoft will be replenished. The sand that is used to replenish the beaches is dredged from licensed offshore locations by a trailing suction hopper dredger. Twice a day – just before high tide – the dredger moves closer to the beach to pump approximately 5,000 cubic metres of sand onto the beach. The HAM316 dredger that is used for this scheme has the smallest carbon footprint in its class.

Sand – not a long term option in face of growing impacts of climate change

However, the Environment Agency has recognised that in the long term it will not be sustainable to continue with just sand as a method of flood risk management in the face of the growing impact of climate change.

Mark Robinson, senior flood risk advisor for the Environment Agency, said:

“Our Lincolnshire Beach Management scheme helps us protect thousands of homes and businesses on the Lincolnshire coast. The scheme also offers real value to Lincolnshire’s coastal tourism economy, by maintaining the sandy beaches that are so well-loved by residents and visitors alike.

“While our annual beach nourishment works continue to be very effective, our long-term estimates suggest that it will not be sustainable to continue with just sand as a method of flood risk management in the future due to the impact of climate change.

“This is why we have worked over a number of years to review our strategy for coastal flood risk management between Saltfleet and Gibraltar Point. We took a shortlist of options to public consultation in early 2019 and are currently finalising our new draft strategy for coastal flood risk management over the next 100 years, which we will be taking forward to consultation later this year.”