Gower Society NewsletterSummer 2000 I make no apology for reminding members, particularly those who are not at present living in the Swansea / Gower area, of the ongoing issue of sand dredging in the Bristol Channel. On Monday 5th June, a 13,500-signature petition was delivered to the Welsh Assembly. This called for a halt to further dredging until it can be proved that such dredging is not responsible for the sand loss which is becoming increasingly obvious on local beaches. In conjunction with this petition, H.T.V. (Wales) presented 3 associated items on the 6 p.m. News (June 5, 6 &7). The Llanelli Sand Dredging Company has applied for a licence to double its current extraction rate at the Helwick Bank to 300,000 tonnes annually. The Assembly Environment Secretary, Sue Essex, has visited several South Gower beaches to see for herself what local people are complaining about. On May 9th, a meeting of interested parties, including the Gower Society, held at the Mumbles Motor Boat & Fishing Club, was addressed by the Director of the South Wales Sea Fisheries Committee, Philip Coates. His presentation emphasised the importance of sharing information and co-ordinating opposition to this application. He pointed to the environmental issues. The Helwick Bank is a long established feeding and spawning ground for bass, a species of fish specially adapted for feeding on sandbanks. He explained the food chain which exists there; sand eels feed on mysids (species of shrimps) and other invertebrates, then predatory fish and birds feed on the sand eels. Removing the sand removes the habitat, or upsets the hydrodynamics to such an extent that the fish will disappear; bass, turbot and small-eyed ray are particularly vulnerable. He then broadened the perspective. The Nash Bank off Porthcawl has seen a ten-fold increase in dredged sand extraction between 1926 and 1995. In spite of this, the volume of sand on the bank has remained largely constant, but the shape of the bank has changed. This suggests that sand has been coming from the surrounding area to replace what has been extracted. Has sand moved from wider afield to replace this? Common sense suggests a scenario similar to a child digging a hole on the beach. The tide rises and falls, and the hole fills with sand again. But if the sand is carried away, the sand that refills the hole must have come from somewhere else. I envisage a 'knock on' situation. 70 years dredging on the Nash Bank has drawn in sand which in turn has been drawn in from further afield. This might explain the persistent, gradual loss on sand noticed on Gower beaches. The more recent dredging on the Helwick Bank has compounded the problem, and sand is now disappearing to a very noticeable degree. There is no hard evidence as yet of a link between the banks. There is, however, new information now of a link between the Helwick Bank and Porteynon Beach in stormy conditions. As I mentioned in the Spring Newsletter, rocks are appearing where previously they were below the surface. A recent look at Porteynon Bay showed a diminution of the depth of sand, with the frequently wet appearance of the once golden beach at low tide indicating poor absorption of the surface water; but more sinister is the 'scooped out', steeper appearance of the bay, resulting in much rougher conditions at times of high tide and on shore winds, which can result in breakers which make it dangerous to launch the lifeboat at Horton, and cause a delay when the boat has to be towed to Porteynon, where the Point provides more sheltered conditions for launching. Such a delay may make all the difference between a successful rescue and a fatality. What other factors can be used to estimate the effect of dredging? There has been a perceived reduction of fish stocks. Naturally the South Wales Sea Fisheries Committee is very concerned, but so far all representations to the Welsh Office & Assembly have been largely ignored, and consultants are unable to answer the biological questions raised. The South Wales Sea Fisheries Committee, a Local Authority Body, advised against further dredging. It requested an independent assessment, funded by the Crown Estates. It suggested seeking possible alternative sources, such as recycling demolished building material, and advised that inshore bank systems should be considered by CCW as candidates for Special Areas of Conservation under the Habitats Directive. The Mumbles meeting was later addressed by an environmental scientist from Tenby, Tim Deere Jones, who reported that beaches as far away as Tenby were now showing signs of sand loss. He pointed out that so far there is a horrendous ignorance of the biological effects of dredging; what else is in the aggregate in the form of micro-organisms? The technology used to date is not sufficiently sensitive - so far only about a fifth of the organisms living on the sandbank, playing their parts in the food chain, have been identified. Research to date has centred on the collection of larger invertebrates using sieves that have too large a mesh size. Final food for thought: 1. Tim Deere Jones graphically suggested that if the Llanelli Dredging Company's application to double the rate of sand extraction is successful, the annual quantity of sand removed will be equivalent to 2 international football pitches being excavated to a depth of 4 feet. (That hole would take some filling!) 2. In response to a written question put by South West Wales A.M. Alun Cairns, Environment Secretary Sue Essex stated that, since 1962, 80,900,000 tons of aggregate have been extracted from the Bristol Channel. (Sufficient to build 3,000,000 detached houses!). Appeal to members: 1 If you have not already signed a petition form, there will be more available shortly in local shops; these can be handed in to the Mumbles Motor Boat & Fishing Club, 642 Mumbles Road, Southend. Or write expressing your concern to Carwyn Jones at the Welsh Assembly. 2 If you have clearly identifiable photographs which show our beaches in 'healthier' days, please consider lending them to the Gower Society. |