'Rock armour' sea defences approved for the Port of Sunderland
and live on Freeview channel 276
Proposals were submitted last year to upgrade the Hendon Foreshore Barrier to help safeguard key infrastructure.
The plans included the construction of a reinforced concrete deck area andseawall with a ‘rock armour revetment’ in front of the seawall.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdAccording to planning documents, the works form part of Sunderland City Council’s capital programme to “improve the condition and performance of the existing structure against coastal erosion and wave overtopping”.
This aims to bring the structure “in line with the appearance, condition and performance of the Hendon Tip Wall to the immediate south”.
The approach is also described as similar to recent and planned works to the Stonehill Wall, which sits further north within the Port of Sunderland.
Plans for the Hendon Foreshore Barrier were discussed by Sunderland City Council’s Planning and Highways Committee at a meeting on April 3, 2023, at City Hall.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdIn a report prepared for the decision-making panel, council planners deemed the scheme acceptable and recommended it for approval.
The council report said the development would “improve the established sea defences at the Port of Sunderland” and would “seek to mitigate the likely effects of climate change”.
It was also noted that the development would “have no negative impacts on the operation of the Port of Sunderland” and would be compatible within several flood zones.
After being put to the vote this week, the plans won unanimous support from the Planning and Highways Committee.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdThe project is expected to start this month and will take between 26 and 52 weeks to complete, with works “largely dictated by available access and sea states during construction”.
The existing Hendon Foreshore Barrier comprises a seawall, approximately 150m in length, and was first constructed in around 1930.
The sea wall also provides coastal defence to the northern part of the Northumbrian Water Limited (NWL) Hendon Sewage Treatment Works.
In recent years, rock armour has been used as an emergency measure to prevent further erosion at part of the structure.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdNew works are located towards the southern end of the Port of Sunderland, south of Hudson Dock and east of the NWL Hendon Sewage Treatment Works.