Kenneth Pye
Associates
Ltd.
Scientific Research,
Consultancy and Investigations
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Recent coastal changes and future management options for the Dunwich to Sizewell area, Suffolk
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The coast between Dunwich and Sizewell on the Suffolk coast is of considerable importance for a number of reasons, including the fact that it contains the 'flagship' RSPB reserve at Minsmere, the nuclear power station facility at Sizewell, and the National Trust property at Dunwich Heath. The Minsmere RSPB reserve attracts more than 80,000 visitors each year. It contains a diverse assemblage of wetland and other habitats, including extensive freshwater reed beds, and is home to up to 90 species of breeding birds including bitterns, avocets, marsh harrier and marsh tit. Parts of the area are designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), Special Area of Conservation (SAC), Special Protection Area (SPA) and Ramsar Site. South of Minsmere lies the large Sizewell nuclear power station facility. Sizewell 'A' began decommissioning at the end of 2006. Sizewell 'B' is the UK's only Pressurised Water Reactor (PWR), generating approximately 3% of the UK's electricity. An
estuary existed at Minsmere until the eighteenth century, when it was finally
sealed off from the sea and the land drained. The development of a shingle beach and
sand dune barrier blocked the seaward end of the estuary, and an extensive
drainage system with a sea sluice gate were installed in the early part of the
nineteenth century. As part of these works, an artificial clay bank was also
built behind the beach and dune ridge, which acted as a second line of the
coastal defences for the reclaimed marsh behind. The coastal defences fronting
the Sizewell A and B nuclear power stations consist virtually entirely of the beach and dunes to seaward, although the power
stations were constructed on slightly higher ground, and a large artificial bank
and been built behind the beach to the north of the site. In a study of the long-term morphological change of the Suffolk coastline, historical maps and charts of the Dunwich to Sizewell frontage were digitised to assess the long-term changes which have occurred since 1575. More recent changes were studied by examining airborne lidar topographic survey data, ground-based topographic surveys, bathymetric surveys, aerial photographs, and measurements of winds, waves and tides. Although the coastline historically has experienced net erosion at an average rate of c. 0.5 m per year, there is no evidence that rates of coastal recession and/or frequency of flooding has increased in recent decades. Indeed, rates of cliff erosion at Dunwich, and shoreline recession at the northern end of the Minsmere Reserve have actually declined in the past 50 years. However, this trend may change in the next 100 years if the rate of sea level rise or degree of storminess increases due to changes in climate.
Publications and Reports Pye,
K. and Blott, S.J.
(2006). Coastal processes and morphological change in the Dunwich - Sizewell
area, Suffolk, UK. Journal of Coastal Research 22, 453-473. Pye, K. and Blott, S.J. (2006). Minsmere Sea Defences Coastal Processes Assessment - Further Report. Prepared for the RSPB (East Anglian Office). Kenneth Pye Associates Ltd., External Investigation Report ER601, 15 pp. Pye, K. and Blott, S.J. (2005). Coastal Processes and Morphological Evolution of the Minsmere Reserve and Surrounding Area, Suffolk. Kenneth Pye Associates Ltd., External Research Report ER511, 154 pp. Pontee, N.I., Pye, K.
and Blott, S.J.
(2004) Morphodynamic behaviour and sedimentary variation of mixed sand and
gravel beaches, Suffolk, UK. Journal of Coastal Research 20, 256-276.
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