Clean-up at Torcross January 2015
Clean-up at Torcross January 2015
Clean-up at Torcross January 2015
Clean-up at Torcross January 2015
Major sea defence project gets underway at the start of 2015
A major project to move 27,000 tonnes of shingle to shore up exposed sea defences at Torcross which were laid bare by last year’s storms is now well underway along Slapton Line.
The operation, being mounted by South Hams District Council and carried out by SWH Civils, involves moving shingle thrown up above the high water mark by the storms at Pilchard Cove.
A bulldozer scoops up the shingle before loading it by excavator into trucks which then plough through one kilometre of shingle to Strete Gate car park. The shingle is then tipped out and reloaded into lorries and transported five kilometres to Torcross where another excavator places the shingle to support the sea defences.
Strete Gate car park has been closed to the public during the working day since the work began on January 12, and traffic lights have been in operation to safely guide the traffic.
The £250,000 project, funded by the Environment Agency (EA) with a contribution from Devon County Council (DCC), is likely to take around eight weeks and involve 3,000 lorry movements along the vital A379 Slapton Line highway.
Around five dumper trucks, a bulldozer, three excavators and a further five lorries plus traffic lights have been operating on the site.
South Hams Engineering Manager Chris Brook said: “This is a relatively straightforward operation but a major one. We are involved because we are the Coastal Protection Authority, working in partnership with the EA and DCC.
“We had hoped that nature would play its part, as has happened in the past, and replenish the beach with the shingle lost in the winter storms. But on this occasion we have had to lend nature a helping hand. Let’s hope this winter’s storm will be kinder.”
The works are part of the continued commitment by the Slapton Line Partnership to maintain the A379 road for as long as possible.
The partnership was formed to co-ordinate the activities around achieving this and it has meant close co-operation between its members South Hams District Council, Devon County Council, Natural England, the Environment Agency and local land owners including the Whitley Wildlife Trust.