East End beach carpark may increase coastal erosion, says DoE

Proposed public amenities at an East End beach, including a carpark and toilets, are likely to cause erosion of the shoreline, according to the Department of Environment.

The Lands Ministry’s application for the development off Sea View Road asks the Central Planning Authority to disregard the regulated setback from the high-water mark.

The legal distance is 75 feet; however, the plan shows the seven-space carpark as close as 49 feet, a septic tank 52 feet from the high-water mark and the restrooms 68 feet away.

“The parking lot as proposed will almost certainly interact with the sea leading to increased instances of erosion,” the environment department said in its analysis of the proposal.

However, a representative for the ministry said in the application, there is sufficient reason to grant a variance “as the proposed development is adjacent to a protective reef”.

The applicant’s letter explained that the three land parcels are narrow, have a small total site acreage of just 0.96 acres and are zoned ‘beach resort residential/institutional’.

This “created some hardship in finding an appropriate design solution to locate both the proposed restrooms [and] septic tank within the setbacks”, the letter said.

It added that the characteristics of the proposed $250,000 development are consistent with the existing character and land use of the surrounding area.

The Department of Environment, under delegated authority of the National Conservation Council, said part of the planned carpark is located on the active beach ridge and foreshore.

“The area for parking is extensive given the size of the public beach, especially as there is paved public parking already along the roadside to the west,” it added.

The department said the large non-porous parking area will not only remove the area available for the beach but will likely result in runoff which will further erode the beach.

Learning lessons

The environment department stressed that it is crucial for all developers, especially the government, to understand the potential consequences of altering the natural environment.

It urged them to “take valuable lessons from the southern end of Seven Mile Beach” and said coastal setbacks should not be reduced but instead should be treated as a minimum.

Climate-change predictions for the region, including sea level rise and increased intensity of storm events such as storm surge, make this even more important.

“Setbacks seek to protect properties against these inevitable effects of climate change… by ensuring that hard structures are not located in an area susceptible to these hazards.”

The department said many of the current public beaches such as Kaibo Beach, Spotts Public Beach and Governor Russell Beach already suffer from erosion near the cabanas.

It recommended that all hard structures which form a part of the East End proposal meet the minimum coastal setback requirements.

“It would appear that there is sufficient room to reposition or reorient the parking and the restrooms and the septic tank to meet the minimum setbacks,” the department said.

“We also recommend that the septic tank be located on the roadside or as far away from the sea as possible.”

The environment department also said the development is on a turtle-nesting beach and made recommendations to avoid harm.

The application will be discussed during a meeting of the Central Planning Authority on Wednesday, 17 Jan. and the decision published in the minutes in about three weeks.