Early this week the Environment Agency has approved a £12.1M fund towards the regeneration of the St Annes sea wall.
The replacement aims to reduce the risk of coastal erosion and flooding to over 500 properties and businesses over the next 100 years and involves replacing the existing 660m long seawall around the Island site in St Annes.
The site also being a strategic headland means it will also manage the coastal risk to the natural dune and beach defences to the north and south over the same time period.
The existing seawall is currently in a poor condition and is now at the end of its design life. Having been first constructed in 1935 the crest level is low resulting in frequent overtopping, flooding and damage to the seawall and promenade.
With climate change and future sea level rises, the frequency and severity of overtopping and flooding is predicted to worsen, meaning action needs to be taken imminently to protect those homes and businesses in the area.
Councillor Roger Small, Chair of the Operation Management Committee for Fylde Council Said: “I am delighted that the council has received approval with the necessary financial support for this important infrastructure scheme. The new sea wall project will first and foremost provide security from rising sea levels for the next 100 years, but as we have seen with our other sea wall enhancements, it will bring in extra revenues from increased visitors and users.
I would also like to stress that this has been achieved by modelling the scheme so as to retain the much loved attractions.
Finally this is the opening investment in the St Anne’s regeneration projects that will ensure the town has a good future.”.
Andrew Shore, Area Coastal Engineer for the Environment Agency, said
“We look forward to working with Fylde Council to help deliver this ambitious project over the next few years that will to continue to protect over 500 properties and businesses in the area from flooding and coastal erosion”.
The project follows the success of the Fairhaven to Church Scar sea wall project which completed in 2020.
This previous project, which stretches from Fairhaven Lake to Church Scar promenade adjacent Seafield Road, Lytham, was designed to protect up to 2,400 properties from coastal erosion and flooding. Work began on site in 2018 after previous defences which were built in the late 1890s were identified as being in a failing condition, requiring emergency repairs to be financed every year to prevent a breach and coastal erosion.
Works on the St Annes sea defences could begin as soon as January 2023 and be completed by August 2024, and meetings with stakeholders, and public exhibitions of the works proposed will be held before any works begin.
For regular updates and information regarding the project visit https://www.discoverfylde.co.uk/stannesseawall/
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