The Romney Marsh
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In this section: the fifth continent --- marsh formation --- marsh drainage --- farming --- Dungeness power station --- Dungeness lighthouses --- churches --- Rhee wall

 

Sea Defences
Early attempts were made to stem this advance by building earth walls behind the shingle crest, which were then thatched with faggots, (bundles of brushwood) cut from the local woodlands. It proved quite resistant to the sea in the short term.

Faggots in the form of thick sticks referred as bats were dug in to the shingle at right angles to form groynes to trap the eastward drifting shingle.

In the long term it made little difference to the problem, until seawalls were constructed of stone and subsequently concrete, because the natural long-shore drift continued moving shingle eastwards.

Shingle Recycling
In the last 30 years the local authority has resorted to shingle recycling. The practice is to move it from areas of accumulation, this is always to the east, and transport it back to the west,to recharge the shore, leaving the long-shore drift to redistribute it eastwards. A shingle covering on the walls acts as an absorbent sponge to the waves. This prevents the over topping of the wall, and gives protection to the wall’s structure. A case of harnessing nature to solve a problem

Conclusion
Global warming now presents a serious threat to the marsh, as it is all below high tide level, at an average of almost 5ft (1.5m). The present authority is working on a rise of 2ft (60cm) although other predictions give a figure of 3ft 3” (1m) in 100 years. In the shorter term shingle recycling will continue. The Romney Marsh coastline is an isolated pocket separated by the Fairlight Cliffs to the west and the Folkestone cliffs to the east, and within this area extensive shingle deposits exist. This may well provide shingle for replenishment to top up the recycling process.

It may be contentious to refer to specific areas where likely shingle deposits could be extracted, as much of these are owned by the Ministry of Defense and also included in these are other areas where Nature and Bird Reserves exist. Either the sea will eventually take over, the marsh, or the shingle could be extracted in a systematic way. Removing it from along the whole length of the shore edge its visual loss would be imperceptible, on these open natural shores, erosion still continues, its crest-line being naturally raised as the sea rises, and this happens when a gale on a high tide is experienced at present. It is difficult to imagine that nothing will be done in say 50 years time. In 500 years time the sea may have taken back that which it gave up.

Cliff Bloomfield