Long-term coastal defence plan for Staithes due to be drawn up

A long-term strategy is to be drawn up to protect the future of one of North Yorkshire’s most iconic fishing villages.
The council is looking at a plan to protect Staithes from floods and coastal erosion.The council is looking at a plan to protect Staithes from floods and coastal erosion.
The council is looking at a plan to protect Staithes from floods and coastal erosion.

Scarborough Council has been awarded £100,000 from the Environment Agency to create a coastal defence strategy for Staithes.

The plan is to secure the future of the village, which was once home to explorer James Cook, from the threat of floods and coastal erosion at the hands of the North Sea.

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A report will go before the council’s cabinet next week (12th) outlining the scope of the investigations.

In his report, the council’s principal coastal officer Stewart Rowe says the work will help to protect the village for the next 100 years.

He wrote: “The strategy will seek to better understand the issues, identify and shortlist options, describe the cost and benefits of options for future management of the coastal defence assets in Staithes.

“Once completed this will allow the council to seek funding from the Environment Agency to undertake any necessary capital schemes on behalf of the community.”

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The strategy will also examine the risks associated with cliff instability in Staithes.

In August last year, nine-year-old Harriet Forster from Oxford was killed by a falling rock while playing on the beach in the village.

The final strategy is intended to be presented back to Scarborough Council’s cabinet in November 2020.