Suffolk man in new sea defence challenge

A RETIRED man who started his own do-it-yourself sea defence to save his hamlet from the North Sea is challenging the view that he needs planning permission to finish the work.

Peter Boggis has already deposited 28,000 tonnes of material in front of the cliffs at Easton Bevants, north of Southwold, since 2002, but he was stopped by Waveney District Council in March this year.

He agreed to apply for planning permission and to carry out an Environmental Impact Assessment for his work, but now claims that under European law this is not necessary to complete his scheme in spreading a further 122,000 tonnes of material along the 1km coastline of Easton Bevants.

Mr Boggis, who has lived in the 14-house hamlet for most of his life and has seen 12 homes lost to the sea, said: "I am endeavouring to defend a nation without cost to the nation and to the environment.

"I undertook to apply for planning permission and an environmental impact assessment if it was necessary but Waveney District Council has failed to convince me that this action is necessary.

"In other words, I was right in the first instance to proceed with the work without planning permission.

"Assessments costs up to £20,000 I do not consider that it should be wasted if European law does not require it. £20,000 should be spent on the coast."

A spokesman for the council said he could not comment on a legal matter.

Mr Boggis' decision comes after receiving a letter from engineering consultants Halcrow stating that an exhibition of their preferred coastal defence project for Southwold would have to be delayed because it did not meet the Department for the Envrionment, Food and Rural Affairs' revised guidelines for funding.

Paul Patterson, senior assistant engineer in the coast protection team at Waveney District Council, said they were now looking again at the options and would be meeting a Defra officer next week with the hope for an exhibition by Christmas.