Guardian UK: Beauty spots to be devoured by sea

[marmar]

Beauty spots to be devoured by sea
National Trust warns of losing battle to save much-loved coastal landmarks from rising sea levels and erosion

Juliette Jowit, environment editor
The Observer, Sunday August 24 2008


Some of Britain's most famous coastal landmarks will be radically changed or even lost because it is no longer possible to hold back rising seas and coastal erosion, according to the National Trust.

The castle of St Michael's Mount off the coast of Cornwall, the white cliffs of Birling Gap in East Sussex, Studland beach in Dorset and the dunes of Formby, near Liverpool, are among the places which could alter dramatically. In one of the most extreme cases to be identified by the trust, the entire 18th-century fishing village of Porthdinllaen on the north-west coast of Wales could be left to crumble into the sea.

The report on the 10 coastal hotspots will be published this week to highlight the problems of climate change which threaten about 70 sites around the coastline owned by the trust.

Phil Dyke, the National Trust's coast and marine adviser, said the decision to stop protecting many coastal areas was driven by the rising cost of damage, because global warming is causing more sea-level rises and more intense storms which exacerbate erosion, and because protection measures often cause damage farther along the coast, for example, depriving nearby beaches of shingle and sand. On one site in Cornwall the trust estimated it would cost £6m to build defences which would only last about 25 years. ......(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/aug/24/endangeredhabitats.conservation1

[XemaSab]

1. Phil Dyke?

:shrug:

:rofl: