Resources
Welcome to our Coastal Management Resources page, dedicated to navigating the intricate landscape of coastal management. Addressing the multifaceted challenges of coastal zones involves considerations spanning social, economic, environmental, health, and cultural realms. Numerous organisations are diligently researching and managing various facets of coastal dynamics. This page serves as a valuable signpost, directing you to crucial information encompassing all aspects of our Shoreline Management Plan (SMP) frontage. In the near future, we are excited to share the outcomes of research projects funded by our Coastal Group, providing insights that contribute to sustainable and effective coastal management practices. Explore the wealth of resources gathered here to enhance your understanding of the complexities inherent in preserving our coastal environments.
Policy Units
The SMP20 coastline is divided into Policy Units. A Policy Unit is small length of coast with similar or interacting coastal processes, and assets at risk that can be managed together efficiently.
Each policy unit has its own recommended management strategy for each of the short-, medium- and long-term epochs, which falls into one of four categories:
Hold The Line: Maintain or improve existing coastal defenses to protect the land.
Advance The Line: Build new defenses further seaward.
Managed Realignment: Allow the shoreline to move naturally, but manage the process to reduce risks.
No Active Intervention: Do not intervene with natural coastal processes.
Coastal Management Strategies
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Hold The Line: Hold The Line is a coastal management strategy aimed at preserving the current shoreline position by implementing hard engineering structures like seawalls and groynes. Its primary goal is to protect developed areas and infrastructure from erosion and storm surges. While effective in safeguarding valuable assets, it may pose environmental and financial challenges due to its impact on natural coastal processes and the high cost of construction and maintenance.
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Managed Realignment: Managed Realignment is a strategic approach that involves allowing controlled retreat of the shoreline to a more sustainable position. This method often includes breaching or modifying existing coastal defences to create new intertidal habitats and salt marshes. Balancing coastal protection with ecological restoration, Managed Realignment is considered environmentally friendly and cost-effective, though it may require the relocation of existing infrastructure and may face resistance from affected communities.
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No Active Intervention: The No Active Intervention strategy involves refraining from deliberate actions to defend the shoreline, allowing natural processes to shape the coastline. Suitable for less developed or less valuable coastal areas, this approach accepts the loss of land and property over time. While it avoids the costs associated with intervention, it may lead to the gradual retreat of the shoreline, impacting both natural and human environments.
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Advance The Line: Advance The Line is a proactive strategy that seeks to expand the shoreline seaward through measures like beach nourishment and offshore breakwaters. This approach enhances natural buffers against erosion and storm surges, often creating aesthetically pleasing and environmentally friendly solutions. However, ongoing maintenance is required, and challenges such as finding suitable sediment sources and potential impacts on marine ecosystems must be carefully considered.
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Each SMP policy unit has a specific sub-policy description that describes in more detail what the assigned strategy will likely look like in each area, and, like the Main Policy Coastal Management Strategies, this policy can change over the short-, medium- and long-term.
For more information on this visit the NRW Shoreline Management Plans page or the NRW Coastal Erosion Risk Map page.
Coastal Management
Sub-Categories
​Each Policy Unit and Policy Epoch also has a Policy Sub-Category, which more accurately describes what is intended by the Main Policy. These categories can include:
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Cease to Maintain: Any existing defences or infrastructure will no longer be maintained.
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Local Activity Only: Some allowance for privately constructed defences to protect privately owned land, subject to the application and approval for all necessary permissions.
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Maintain/Replace: Any existing defences or infrastructure will be maintained.
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Natural Features: This area of coastline consists of natural features e.g. cliffs or sand dunes. These will be monitored and sustainably managed with appropriate inventions and management strategies determined on a site-by-site basis.
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No Need to Defend: This area of coastline consists of natural features e.g. cliffs or sand dunes, where the intent is to allow the natural behaviour of the coastline.
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Remove Defences: Any existing defences will be removed to reinstate the natural behaviour of the coastline, usually while sustaining use of the area.
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Repair Not Replace: Any existing defences will be maintained, but not upgraded or replaced.
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Set-Back Defence: A new defence line will be created and/or maintained further back from an existing defence or coastline, usually as part of a managed realignment scheme.
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Slow Erosion: Attempts will be made to slow erosion of the frontage, with appropriate inventions and management strategies determined on a site-by-site basis.
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For more information on this visit the NRW Shoreline Management Plans page or the NRW Coastal Erosion Risk Map page.
Transitioning to Sustainable Coastal Management
The Status-Quo is Not Sustainable
Video courtesy of the Wales Coastal Group Forum.
We cannot continue as we have been. The current status quo in shoreline management faces unprecedented challenges due to climate change and rising sea levels, rendering existing strategies increasingly unsustainable. The escalating threats demand a departure from conventional practices towards a more comprehensive, sustainable approach. Climate-induced intensification of storms and sea-level rise necessitates larger scale and more sophisticated defenses, often entailing substantial financial investments with minimal benefit and longevity. To address these issues, a paradigm shift is underway, emphasising the preservation of the integrity, equity, and resilience of coastlines, their communities, and ecosystems. This evolving approach seeks to harmonise human activities with natural coastal processes, fostering a balance that ensures long-term viability while mitigating the adverse impacts of climate change. The emphasis is not solely on fortifying against environmental changes but on embracing innovative, sustainable solutions that benefit both the environment and coastal inhabitants. The Shoreline Management Plan and it's associated management strategies in the short-, medium- and long-term embraces this change and is a framework for the achievement of a sustainable coastline.
Other Welsh Coastal Groups
