Planning Scotland's Seas: 2013 - The Scottish Marine Protected Area Project – Developing the Evidence Base tor Impact Assessments and the Sustainability Appraisal Final Report

C.6. Coast Protection and Flood Defence

C.6.1 Introduction

This appendix provides an overview of existing and potential future activity for the coast protection and flood defence sector in Scotland and outlines the methods used to assess the impacts of potential MPAs on this sector.

C.6.2 Sector Definition

This sector includes coastal defence measures used to prevent or reduce flood risk and coastal erosion (UKMMAS, 2010). Examples of coastal and flood defences include groynes, sea walls and embankments (termed 'hard engineering') and beach replenishment, managed retreat and coastal realignment (termed 'soft engineering').

C.6.3 Overview of Existing Activity

Information sources used in the assessment are listed in Table C6.1.

Table C6.1 Coast Protection and Flood Defence information sources

Scale	Information Available	Date	Source
Scotland	Coastal protection, flood defence and managed realignment schemes	2011	Scotland's Marine Atlas
Europe	EUROSION: Erosion trends and coastal defence works	2013	http://www.eurosion.org/database/index.html

C.6.3.1 Location and intensity of activity

SNH estimated that 307km of mainland Scotland's coast is comprised of coastal defences (reported in Baxter et al, 2011). The distribution of coastal protection schemes and hard and soft engineered flood prevention schemes in Scotland are shown in Figure C6.

C6.3.2 Economic value and employment

Coast protection and flood defences protect property, land and infrastructure, for example, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) currently estimate that around 26,000 houses and businesses are at risk from coastal flooding in Scotland ^[33] . However, coastal protection and flood prevention schemes do not contribute directly to the economy and hence it is not possible to assign an economic value to this sector. It has been predicted that Scotland will face an increased flood risk in the future, especially in the West although no cost estimates for coastal flooding are available. The number of jobs associated with this sector is also difficult to assess accurately (Baxter et al, 2011).

C6.3.3 Future trends

Future sea level rise and the potential for increasingly severe storm events due to climate change may place Scotland's coastal infrastructure and habitats under increasing threat and hence increase the economic importance of this sector (UKMMAS, 2010; Baxter et al, 2011). The Flood Risk Management (Scotland) Act, which came into force in November 2009, requires SEPA to conduct a national assessment of flood risk by the end of 2011, produce new flood risk and hazard maps by 2013 and implement a national flood risk management plan by 2015.

C.6.4 Assumptions on Future Activity

There is no central source of information about potential future flood and coast protection works in Scotland. For the purposes of this assessment, it has been assumed that flood and coast defences will require replacement or significant maintenance once every 20 years. It has been assumed that one application will be submitted in 2024 for each discrete section of defences.

C.6.5 Potential Interactions with MPA Features

The impacts of the construction of coastal protection and flood defence structures will mainly affect intertidal habitats. Permanent coastal defence structures may result in 'coastal squeeze', whereby a landward migration of the intertidal habitat as a result of sea level rise is prevented. Intertidal habitats may therefore become sub-tidal. Such man-made structures could cause changes in coastal processes such as hydrodynamic and sediment regimes, potentially giving rise to changes in emergence regimes of intertidal species or leading to smothering or a net removal of material. Construction of coastal protection and flood defence structures will also create a barrier against the movement of mobile intertidal species ( JNCC & NE, 2011).

C.6.6 Assumptions on Management Measures for Scenarios

It is assumed that the impact of coast protection and flood defence activities on MPA features will be managed through the existing marine licensing framework. Two scenarios ('lower' and 'upper') have been developed to capture the possible costs of potential MPAs to the coast protection and flood defence sector. These include a range of possible management measures, as detailed requirements will need to be based on site-specific factors.

It has been assumed that there will be no review of existing consents or permissions, although where existing asset owners apply for planning permission or a marine licence for maintenance works, these applications will be considered against the conservation objectives for features for which MPAs may have been designated.

The intermediate ('best') estimate for each site has been based on SNH/ JNCC current views on management options and judgements made by the study team. The assumptions do not pre-judge any future site-specific licensing decisions. After MPA designation, the management of activities in MPAs will be decided on a site-by-site basis and may differ from the assumptions in this assessment.

Management measures applied under the lower and upper scenarios are detailed below. Specific management measure assumptions for each scenario (including the intermediate scenario) are defined in the MPA Site Reports (Table 4, Appendix E).

Lower Scenario

• Additional costs will be incurred for licence applications in assessing potential impacts to MPA features within 1km of proposed coast protection and flood defence activities;
• Mitigation measures may be required for non- OSPAR/BAP features ranging from:
  ˉ No mitigation required for maintenance of existing or construction of new assets;
  ˉ Seasonal restrictions on maintenance or new construction work; and
  ˉ Offsetting measures for the construction of new assets.

Upper Scenario

• Additional costs will be incurred for new site licence applications in assessing potential impacts to MPA features within 1km of proposed coast protection and flood defence activities;
• Additional survey costs will be incurred to inform new licence applications;
• Additional post-licence monitoring of any features within 1km of works footprint;
• Mitigation measures may be required for some OSPAR/BAP features ^[34] for which adequate protection is not currently achieved and all non- OSPAR/BAP features ranging from:
  ˉ No mitigation required for maintenance of existing or construction of new assets;
  ˉ Seasonal restrictions on maintenance or new construction work; and
  ˉ Offsetting measures for the construction of new assets.

C.6.7 Assessment Methods

Additional Licensing Costs

Where required, it is assumed that the additional costs will be as follows:

• Additional assessment costs for planning application - £5k per licence application; and
• Additional survey costs - £3k per planning application (extended phase 1 habitat survey).

Additional Post Licensing Costs

Where required, it is assumed that additional costs will be incurred as follows:

• Additional monitoring costs £2.5k once every 3 years (extended ecological survey)

Mitigation Measures

Where required, it is assumed that the following additional costs may be incurred:

• Seasonal restrictions - assumed no additional cost for maintenance works (works scheduled to avoid sensitive periods) (site specific assessment); and
• Offsetting measures - site specific assessment of possible measures and costs.

C.6.8 Limitations

• Uncertainty concerning future maintenance and new construction requirements; and
• Uncertainty concerning required management measures.

C.6.9 References

Baxter, J.M., Boyd, I.L., Cox, M., Donald, A.E., Malcolm, S.J., Miles, H., Miller, B., Moffat, C.F., (Editors), 2011. Scotland's Marine Atlas: Information for the national marine plan. Marine Scotland, Edinburgh.

JNCC and NE, 2011. General advice on assessing potential impacts of and mitigation for human activities on MCZ features, using existing regulation and legislation. Advice from the Joint Nature Conservation Committee and Natural England to the Regional MCZ Projects. June 2011. 107pp.

United Kingdom Marine Monitoring and Assessment Strategy (UKMMAS), 2010. Charting Progress 2 Feeder Report Productive Seas. Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs on behalf of UKMMAS (Eds. Saunders, J. and McKie, J.) 472pp Available online: http://chartingprogress.Defra.gov.uk/