City of Newcastle – Southern Beaches Coastal Management Program

The City of Newcastle (NSW) has been working on a long-term plan to manage the coastline between Nobbys Headland and Glenrock Lagoon, collectively known as the Southern Beaches.

Now, the city is sharing the shortlisted strategies being considered to help protect places like Merewether, Dixon Park and Bar Beach.

These include:

• Beach Nourishment – adding sand to keep the beaches sandy and create a buffer from erosion;
• Protection Structures – like seawalls and revetments to protect paths, roads and public spaces;
• Managed Retreat – relocating infrastructure to allow the shoreline to naturally shift over time.

The aim of beach nourishment is to build coastal resilience by providing a buffer between the shoreline and nearby infrastructure. This option includes both mass nourishment, which involves one initial high-volume campaign and sand top-ups, where smaller amounts are placed at regular intervals to ensure sand volumes remain optimal.

Protection Structures can include seawalls and revetments which are hard structures that are built to absorb the energy from swells and protect the land and infrastructure behind these structures. Seawalls can be made from concrete, large rocks and rock bags, and run in parallel to the coastline or land they’re in place to protect.

Managed Retreat allows the shoreline to naturally recede. This option will generally require the strategic relocation of assets, such as buildings and roads, to enable the coastline to naturally retreat. This option is environmentally friendly and sustainable in the long-term, although it may change the aesthetic of the beach depending on the underlying geology.

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