Beach recycling scheme wraps up at Preston Beach

The beach recycling scheme on Preston Beach is now complete, Dorset Coast Forum (DCF) said.

After the completion, the contractor and machinery will move to Chiswell on Portland to start further beach recycling and reprofiling as part of the area’s Beach Management Plan.

The work placed around 11,000 cubic meters of shingle onto the beaches, meaning that a similar scheme of work should hopefully not need to be repeated for 5-10 years, depending on weather conditions and the rate of material loss through longshore drift.

Minor annual maintenance to cover the buried rock armor will resume when needed. The beach will not need to close for this, DCF said.

According to DCF, the beach recycling and rock armor burial both ensure a high standard of protection given by the Preston Beach defenses, which includes the beach, seawall and promenade.

Also, the defenses ensure a standard of protection with an annual probability of occurrence (APO) of 1% (1 in 100 year return period) against overtopping and an APO of 0.2% (1 in 500 year return period) against breaching.