Managed coastal retreat, reducing flood risks and protection costs, Dungeness Nuclear Power Station, UK

Abstract

The two reactors of Dungeness Nuclear Power Station (the Station) were built in the late 1950's on the southern, eroding coast of Dungeness, which is the largest coastal shingle feature in Europe. The site was chosen because of its proximity to deep fast flowing water, but local erosion was up to 1.5 m annually. The Station has been protected from erosion throughout its life by beach feeding. The shingle for beach feeding has been taken from the accreting downdrift eastern shore annually during winter months for the last 30 years. The suitability of this method of coast and the flood protection it offered, has been regularly reviewed and has always been found to be considerably less expensive than the more formal options such as rock revetments and concrete seawalls. However, the amount of shingle required to maintain the beach has been increasing rapidly as the main feed point became more and more out of regime. Consequently, a new policy was adopted that allowed the coast locally to retreat, producing considerably cost savings, allowing the level of flood protection offered to the Power Station to be increased and reducing the impacts of shingle extraction. This change in policy was developed from a number of studies and has been in operation for 3 years. Not only has there been a considerable reduction in the amount of shingle required, but the beach stability has improved in the critical areas.