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| Sefton Coast Partnership | Shoreline Management | Nature and Wildlife | Coastal Heritage | Visiting the Coast | Students and Teachers | Coastlines | |
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Winter 1998The Conservation of European Dune LandscapesArticle by John Houston In September 1998 the Sefton Coast Management Scheme hosted a European symposium on the conservation and management of dune systems in north-west Europe. The event was organised as part of the Seton Coast Life Project and brought together sand dune managers and scientists from 17 countries to review current issues and identify the common challenges for the future. Delegates enjoyed their stay in Southport and two field visits in glorious weather, a real bonus after such a poor summer! The symposium was a technical meeting rather than a public meeting, but was well attended by local Councillors and scheme partners. The meeting was an opportunity for improving knowledge about the functioning of dune systems. Managers, including those on the Sefton Coast, were able to listen to the experience of eminent scientists and see their work more clearly in an European context. The full proceedings of the symposium have been published by Liverpool University Press and copies are available in Sefton Libraries. So what were some of the main messages? The opening presentation was given by Professor William Ritchie, Vice-Chancellor of Lancaster University. As a coastal geomorphologist his clear message was that we have to look at the whole system of beaches and dunes and understand the long term processes acting on the coast. Natural forces will always try to reach a state of equilibrium and most of our 'problems' are a result of the constraints that we have put on the natural system. Some of Professor Ritchie's key points are highlighted below. "most coastal dune systems in Europe are mature and in erosional and recycling phases" We are not seeing a major phase of dune building but a localised redistribution of sand. "knowing the sand budget is an important as the understanding of biotic and abiotic processes" For long term predictions of coastal change we have to pay more attention to the total amount of sand in the system. The management of the dunes must include the beach and nearshore zone. In Sefton this will be developed through the adoption of Shoreline management Plans. "any engineering works in dune areas should use 'soft' solutions" The construction of sea walls and other forms of hard defences are inappropriate in dune areas. Where necessary we have to look to techniques such as beach feeding (bringing sand ashore from deeper deposits). "control of the watertable is often overlooked in understanding and, potentially, in managing coastal dunes" The Environment Agency and others are addressing these issues on the Sefton Coast with a new network of monitoring wells to develop a long-term model of the dune water reserves. relatively few dune systems remain free from utilitarian pressures past, present and future" This was central to the meeting. most dune systems are 'managed' in some way whether for agriculture, for forestry or coastal protection. The fragmentation of ownership and managerial objectives, as on the Sefton Coast, can create their own problems. His conclusion were that whilst much more is now known about ecology, geomorphology (the physical formation of dunes) and the way dune systems develop over time, most management effort is directed at dealing with the constraints on the free functioning of the system. these constraints were listed as;
This list is given in a European context but many of the issues identified by Professor Ritchie are just as relevant to the Sefton Coast. The challenge for the Sefton Coast Management Scheme in the future is perhaps to try to work at the highest level possible, i.e. a better understanding of the sediment budget. Looking closely at individual species, important as this work is, is not the way to find out how a whole system functions - we need to look at the bigger picture.
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