England's environment agency releases new sediment guidance
Photo credit: By Operational Land Imager - http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=82844, Public Domain.
As operators begin to pay more attention to the ongoing maintenance of habitats and coastal biodiversity as part of their dredging works, the Environment Agency has launched a new handbook on the subject of nourishing beaches and estuaries using dredged sediment.
Following on from guides on restoring saltmarsh, seagrass and other habitats, Restoring Estuarine and Coastal Habitats with Dredged Sediment focuses on geomorphological and physical prerequisites for restoring coastal areas, including a review of existing methods, a guide to regulatory and marine licensing aspects, as well as examining existing case studies.
Aimed at a range of individuals and organisations including local communities and coastal partnerships, policy makers, nature conservation bodies and other interested parties, the guide aims to assist operators in overcoming the legal and technical barriers to putting dredged sediment to better use, with guidance regarding key considerations and strategic planning to aid project delivery.
The guide also contains the Environment Agency’s recommendations for collaboration between stakeholders.
Interest in sediment reuse is growing, with experts anticipating myriad benefits for encouraging regrowth of deprecated marine ecosystems for carbon sequestration, as well as in terms of coastal defence against rising sea levels. It may be that in many cases, creating sandbanks and other structures can hold back the tides more effectively than concrete structures, eliminate the imbued carbon costs, as well as enabling ecosystems either to grow, or grow back. Recently, Scotland announced the start of a £2.4m project for the restoration of seagrass meadows and oyster reefs off its east coast, in a plan dubbed “Restoration Forth”.
While the advice given in this editorial content has been developed using the best information available, it is intended purely as guidance to be used at the user’s own risk. No responsibility is accepted by CEDA or by the Intent Communications Ltd or by any person, firm, corporation or organisation who or which has been in any way concerned with the furnishing of information or data, the compilation, publication or any translation, supply or sale of this Guidance for the accuracy of any information or advice given herein or for any omission herefrom or from any consequences whatsoever resulting directly or indirectly from compliance with or adoption of guidance contained therein even if caused by a failure to exercise reasonable care.