Sand pumped onto beaches to guard against flooding

Fresh sand is being pumped onto Lincolnshire beaches to protect thousands of properties from flooding.

Around 14 million cubic feet (400,000 cubic metres) is being used to top up beaches between Saltfleet and Gibraltar Point, the Environment Agency (EA) said.

The idea is to build up beaches to take the brunt of the force of the sea, reducing pressure on hard defences such as seawalls.

Deborah Higton, the EA's flood risk manager, said the work would protect 20,000 homes and businesses and 24,500 static caravans.

The £7m project would also reduce flood risk for about 135 sq miles (350 sq km) of land and "maintain the county’s sandy beaches for us all to enjoy", she added.

According to the EA, the sand is being dredged from licensed areas of the sea bed to replenish levels naturally lost from beaches to the sea throughout the year.

Work began on Thursday 2 May, and is expected to last six or seven weeks.

Mablethorpe and nearby Boygrift were among the first beaches to benefit.

Others due to be replenished include:

• Trusthorpe: 8-16 May
• Sutton on Sea: 5-17 May
• Huttoft: 17-31 May
• Trunch Lane: 22-27 May
• Ingoldmells: 22-27 May
• Wolla Bank and Chapel Six Marshes: 19 May to 4 June

People visiting beaches on these dates are being asked to stay away from the work sites.

The EA said it had been restoring sand levels on the Lincolnshire coast every year since 1994.

The government has pledged to invest £5.2bn in England’s flood and coastal defences by 2027.

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