A number of studies showed that many of the existing sea and flood defences along the extensive Blackpool frontage were coming to the end of their useful life. Options for their replacement were examined which included the construction of a Seabee revetment at the southern end (see the photograph), that was finally chosen. An added benefit of this scheme was that it lead to a local raising of beach levels by about 2m.

Elsewhere, repairs/reconstruction of the varying designs of the seawalls were the more appropriate option. However, in the Central Promenade area, a more radical approach had to be adopted. Tidal working and the exposed nature of the coast as well as the popularity of the area with visitors, made the work particularly interesting and challenging.

The vertical movement and exposure of large precast sewage outfall pipes after construction and burial lead to the investigation of the liquefaction properties of the local sands under wave and current action. These studies lead to the placement of filter and scour rock over significant lengths of the outfall route as part of the remedial works.

Eurotunnel's Chief Engineer (Marine) for the design and construction of a very large reclamation platform, on the foreshore at Shakespeare Cliff, to accommodate the 3.75 million cubic metres of tunnel spoil generated on the English side of the Channel Tunnel. As well as housing the spoil, the additional 250,000m2 of land was used to accommodate both temporary facilities for the six channel tunnel drives and the permanent facilities required to cool the tunnel. The remaining platform area is now a nature reserve, known as Samphire Hoe.

The capital cost of the Works was some £60 million, which involved technical and financial assessments of permanent and temporary sea wall designs, initiation and appraisal of over 40 studies by specialist organisations called in to support designs and of the construction.

Consultant for monitoring the potential impacts of the bridge crossing of the river Medway, which included the widening of the adjacent M2 road bridge, before, during and after construction. Detailed hydrographic, aerial and suspended sediment monitoring was carried out, initially quarterly prior to construction and then bi-annually, covering about 10km of the tidal river.

The Client was Union Railways and the period of the services was from 1996 to 2003.

Analysis of exiting reports and data, and recommendations as to the likely future morphological changes and the requirements for future emergency works.

Design guidance for the harbour redevelopment, including the original breakwater and designed new works, which were then built.

Work was undertaken on behalf of the Client, Isle of Man Harbour Board, were for breakwater in deep water, which required hydraulic modelling for breakwater stability and rock dredging to improve shipping access . Some 3,000 Stabit units weighing 23t were used, the capital cost being £11 million.  

The work was carried out between 1975 and 1983.

Project Engineer, Manager and finally Director for the prediction, monitoring and supervision of beach recharge around the nuclear power stations at Dungeness. The project has been on-going since 1965 and has recently included localised managed retreat.

The work for Nuclear Electric plc (previously CEBG) has involved annual survey and review of the shingle replenishment, monitoring of downdrift affects and the borrow area for the shingle recharge and regular inspections.

Project Director and Expert Witness for claims regarding coast erosion, which followed the construction of coastal defences at Mappleton on the Holderness Coast in 1990. It was alleged that they had caused increased cliff erosion over 1km to the south (downdrift).

The key factors: Involved analyses of long, short and medium term cliff erosion rates, analyses of charts, studies of coastal processes, site inspections, coastal evolution and beach plan shape modelling, a analysis of coastal erosion from historical maps and aerial photographs, presentation using GIS, provision of Expert Witness reports, review of other expert reports and attendance at meetings of the various experts and Court appearance.

The Client was the East Riding of Yorkshire Council and they successfully fought the case in the Lands Tribunal.

The period of services was from 1996 to 1999.

Project Manager for a high profile project, undertaken for the Insurance Industry (Association of British Insurers), to determine the risk of coastal flooding along the entire coastline of England and Wales and four major estuaries.

The services included flood risk assessment, analyses, software development, data collection, database development, coastal engineering studies, numerical modeling analysis, GIS based production of maps defining the degree of flood risk and flood depth.

The key factors included: Flood Risk Assessments and Classification, assessment of 2000 defences, software development, data collection, joint probabilities, mathematical modeling, establish database on marine conditions and flood defences, GIS mapping, creation of detailed coastal flood maps, analysis of flood areas and flood depths and the provision of client support in public relations.

The period of services was from 1992 to 2002 and contained numerous follow-up studies.

Review of all information, studies and give evidence for court case involving the delivery of materials to Lappel Bank. Also appointed as Single Joint Expert.

The Client was Berrymans Lace Mawer, Hillier and Co and the work involved appearing as a witness of fact for Medway Ports Authority, acting as Single Joint Expert for the Court and using GIS to aid my investigations.

Project Director for the combined hydrographic/topographic surveys required to monitor movement of beach material for Gosport Borough Council.

The services required periodic surveys along 8km of coast, the combination of Real Time Kinematic and Differential GPS techniques and the overlap of bathymetric and topographic data.

The key factors involved were: Establishment of a permanent control network, up to 4 surveys a year to monitor seasonal and long term morphology, RTK techniques to establish topography on a 5m grid, differential GPS and echo sounder to provide bathymetric data up to 300m offshore, electronic tide gauge established to monitor water levels throughout survey and the construction of a digital ground model for data comparison cross sections and contours.

The period of the services was from 1998 to 2002.

Project Director for the study and design and Engineer for the construction of eleven rock armour groynes and supply of 310,000 cubic metres of shingle beach material at Lee-on-the- Solent, Hampshire.

The work for the Client, Gosport Borough Council, from 1993 to 1999, involved the beneficial use of shingle, through the coordination of two independent contracts, which resulted in a saving of some £2 million. The entire foreshore at Lee-on-the-Solent was a SSSI, requiring the close integration of environmental was widely covered by the local media. The capital cost was £3.5 million.

The Project won a Civil Engineering Prize.

Project Manager for deepening of the Medway approach channel to accommodate a new port on the Isle of Grain. Dredged material from the channel was used to reclaim land on the Lappel Bank adjacent to Sheerness Docks. I was responsible for preparation of tender documents, the geotechnical design of the reclamation and supervision of the works.

The Client was the Medway Ports Authority (later Medway Ports Ltd) and the work involved the preparation of tender and contract documentation for the 3 million cubic metres dredging and reclamation, a 6 week design period, geotechnical design of reclamation over soft mud deposits, temporary re-routing of drainage outfalls, preparation of cost estimates and the supervision of dredging and reclamation for the £7 million project. The dredging and reclamation encountered significant amounts of Ordnance.

A multibeam echosounder survey one year after the completion of the construction of long sea cooling water outfall revealed extensive erosion of the scour protection rock on the seabed around the structure (see the figure showing the results of the survey). Subsequent surveys showed continuing erosion due to the impact of the local acceleration of the tidal and wave induced currents around the structure.

The impact of waves and currents on the original design and the new design remedial design were examined on a physical hydraulic model. Surveys following the remedial works showed the new scour design to be functioning correctly.

Studies of environmental conditions in relation to the new offshore wind farm on Scroby Sands, Yarmouth. This included analyses of the historic bank changes and the prediction of future changes over the next 50 years.

Further analyses as to the actual impact of the wind farm on the Bank as well as on coast, following measurements of currents and waves and of the changing bank morphology.

As one of a number of follow-up studies for the Association of British Insurers, I was the Manager for a project establishing the total potential losses that could occur due to coastal flooding arising from an individual storm crossing the UK. This mathematical modelling study provided insurers with estimates of total potential flooding for a set of actual and hypothetical, but realistic possible storms.

The study, which was done in association with the UK Meteorological Office (UKMO), included: a review of historical meteorological records to identify storms associated with reported flooding; establishment of waves, tides and surges throughout the duration of selected storms; assessment of the risk of flooding during each storm; reporting and mapping of results.

The key factors included: Assessment, mathematical modelling, review of historical records and flood risk mapping.

The period of the services was from 1996 to 1997.

Project Director and Expert on a commission to undertake a study of harbour siltation for Sovereign Harbour Marina Ltd. The studies were in relation to the design bathymetry and breakwater length adopted in original harbour design. Subsequently, there were studies enabling the Client to obtain a DEFRA dumping licence for the dredged spoil.

The key factors included harbour siltation investigations, hydraulic mathematical modeling, environmental impact assessments, FEPA disposal licence applications, sediment monitoring programmes and environmental assessments.

The period of the services was from 1999 and is on-going.

Preparation of two expert reports covering the dredging, reclamation and ground improvement methodologies, relating to the soil types, areas to be dredged, bunding and programming, together with dealing with ordnance, wrecks and the various licencing requirements for a Public Inquiry. The quantity to be dredged is about 30 million m3. The other expert report concerned the risks to the development from tidal surges.

Management of the development of a property in Cornwall on an exposed area of cliff on Cornwall's south east coast. The development includes the creation of a swimming pool, a studio, buried within the slope of the upper cliff and a 14m deep shaft for beach access, which will join into an old mining adit, some 2m above beach level. The investigations include the suitability of both solar heat and power, as well as a ground sourced heat pump system for the pool and electrical energy from wind.

The management requirements include obtaining the necessary planning permissions for the major components of the development. The large garden area will be landscaped, which will include an al-fresco eating area, a cliff top viewing area and a number of paths.