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Sandwich Town Tidal Defences

Welcome to our latest newsletter which provides an
update on our progress on the Sandwich Town Tidal
Defence scheme.
The scheme involves works on 16 individual
reaches of the river and will reduce the risk of tidal
flooding to 488 homes and 94 commercial
properties in Sandwich.
Update
Our works north of Richborough Road are
progressing well. We have built the new flood wall,
and completed erosion protection works to the river
bank. Future works in this area will involve
embankment raising and raising the existing access
track.

April 2015

In March, we removed our temporary sandbag wall

behind Aynsley Court to allow us to install steel
sheet piles in front of a small section of the existing
river wall. As space is very limited in this area we
used a barge to act as a platform so we could carry
out the works. We used a crane positioned on the
other side of the river to move the piles.
The sandbag wall will be replaced with a new brick
clad reinforced concrete wall, like the wall in the rest
of this section.

Barge used to assist piling works behind Aynsley Court

Reinforced concrete wall

north of Richborough Road

We have completed our steel sheet piling works at

the entrance of Gazen Salts car park. The piles
continue downstream along a 176 metre section of
the river. We have put a concrete capping beam on
top of the piles and we will continue to add brick
cladding to the landward side of the piles.

Our planned works near the Princes Golf Course,

Monks Wall Nature Reserve and behind Highway
Marine Boat Yard are still on hold until ground
conditions improve. We are hoping to re-start works
in the spring.
We have completed the new defences at the
following locations:
East of Richborough Road
Sandwich Marina
Stonar Lake
Sandwich Quay
Gallows Field and Gazen Salts
Discovery Park
Although sections of the new flood defences are
now complete, we still need to carry out landscaping
works in some areas. This includes replanting,
pruning, top soil works and installing root barriers.
Replacement planting is an essential part of the
scheme. For every tree lost during our works, we
will plant at least two.

Steel sheet piling works near Gazen Salts car park

Thursday 21 May 2015, 9am 3pm

Come along to our exhibition trailer at
Sandwich Quay and find out more about the
Sandwich Town Tidal Defence scheme.
Members of the project team will be available to
tell you about the project and answer your
questions.
Footpath restrictions
Our temporary footpath closure at Reach 6 (Vigo
Sluice to Black Sluice) is still in place. Some people
have been entering our construction site to use the
footpath, putting themselves and others at risk.
We understand the inconvenience our works may
cause but please use the alternative route at Saxon
Shore Way. Our contractors will continue to monitor
the ground conditions and will start construction
again when they improve.
As mentioned in our previous newsletter we also
have a temporary footpath restriction from
Richborough Road to Goshall Railway (Reach 1)
until September 2015. However if we complete the
works sooner, this restriction will be lifted. If you
have any queries regarding these restrictions please
contact us using the details below.
Wildlife and habitat creation
Before we begin any construction works, our
ecologists move any wildlife out of harms way. So
far, we have relocated over 3,700 reptiles. At Monks
Wall Nature Reserve we have created a special
habitat area to re-home the wildlife collected.
The scheme provides significant biodiversity
enhancements, including new wetlands and wetland
grazing areas. At the tidal relief area near the
Princes Golf Course we have created two ponds
which cover an area of approximately 7 hectares.
The ponds have islands for nesting waders and wild
fowl and we have planted reeds and other wetland
plants. This will encourage insects and other wildlife
to the area.

Pond 1 at the tidal relief area near the Princes Golf

Course

End of Year Two Questionnaire and

Completion Ceremony
Your feedback is important to us. Last year we
asked you to complete our End of Year One
Questionnaire. Your suggestions were very helpful
and helped us to shape the way we provide
information to you and others.
As we reach the end of the second year of
construction, we would appreciate you taking the
time to answer our End of Year Two Questionnaire.
We expect to complete our works by the summer of
2015 and we are keen to hear your ideas on how
you think we should celebrate finishing our works. If
you would like to send us your celebration idea, or
would like an electronic version of the questionnaire
please contact us using the details below.
As always, thank you for your patience while we
complete the works.
How you can find out more
Please contact our Sandwich Public Liaison
Officer, Louise Sturgeon who is available to help
with any questions or problems you may have
regarding our work.
Telephone: Louise Sturgeon 07831 481398
Email: SandwichTownTidal@environmentagency.gov.uk
Site address:
Jackson Civil Engineering
Sandwich Town Tidal Defence
Sandwich Industrial Estate
Sandwich
CT13 9LY
Website:
www.gov.uk/environment-agency
Twitter: @EnvAgencySE

A lizard picked up at Stonar Lake

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