Blackwater Estuary: Soft engineering managed retreat case study

Blackwater Estuary: Soft engineering managed retreat case study Where is Blackwater estuary? - It is a part of the Essex coastline and is based around the river Blackwater Which business/process is the estuary used for? - Important oyster farming What is produced in Maldon - Lots of salt How much land is protected around the area and for what? - 4.4km squared is designated as a Special Protection Area for Wildlife What was the backwater estuary the first example of in the UK? - Managed retreat What was the rate of erosion at the estuary before the scheme? - 0.3-2m of land per year due to rising sea levels What has caused the erosion here other than rising sea levels? - The South-East sinking due to isostatic readjustment What is coastal squeeze? - When beaches and salt marshes are trapped between rising sea levels and hard engineering strategies Give an example of coastal squeeze - Sea walls and flood embankments mean beaches and salt marshes cannot retreat to protect the land What was done deliberately at Abbott's Hall Farm and when? - It was breached in 2002 How and when was the land of Abbott's Hall reclaimed? - It was originally reclaimed by the construction of a sea wall over 300 years ago What was the breaching of Abbott's Hall farm timed with and why? - The Spring tide so it flooded more extensively and washed in seedlings for a salt marshland 4 advantages of the managed retreat at Blackwater Estuary - - salt marshes are rare in Europe - there was reduced pressure on sea walls elsewhere along the estuary - natural defence against flooding and erosion - new wildlife habitats were created I.e. Inter-tidal mudflats and salt marshes How much money was saved on maintaining other sea defences? - £500,000 4 disadvantages of the managed retreat at Blackwater Estuary - - land was lost and beaches built up, destroying settlements - compensation to land owners had to be paid - it was not socially accepted, and caused conflict - it is expensive to build new roads and pipelines