26 Sep Where can we build now?
You may have seen the increasingly alarming news that the country’s East coast is slowly slipping into the sea. Whole coastal villages have been lost or risk further erosion by the burgeoning North Sea. For example, at one point, Happisburgh in Norfolk was over 20ft from the sea; it’s now on the edge of a cliff face. In total, 35 homes have already been lost, and now 900 people risk an enforced removal. The problem for the people in these villages is that they cannot sell their homes. With no further government funding coming for sea protection, there is no other option but to leave the place, and others, to its fate.
If this trend continues, where can we build? Given that we are an island if our shoreline erodes, what will actually be left for us to use? The answer may well come from a more internal source. Brownfield sites will need to be utilised much more than they are at the moment.
Brownfield sites come with some problems. The land may well be dangerous due to the site’s previous use. Contaminated Land Remediation, like that from soilfix.co.uk/, may well be required. However, it is not as costly as attempting to stop the rising tides that threaten to engulf our island over the next hundred years. Many rightly believe that is a result of climate change, so unless we do something globally, this may well be the shape of things to come.