'Rock armour' sea defences approved for the Port of Sunderland

Proposals were submitted last year to upgrade the Hendon Foreshore Barrier to help safeguard key infrastructure.

The plans included the construction of a reinforced concrete deck area andseawall with a ‘rock armour revetment’ in front of the seawall.

According to planning documents, the works form part of Sunderland City Council’s capital programme to “improve the condition and performance of the existing structure against coastal erosion and wave overtopping”.

This aims to bring the structure “in line with the appearance, condition and performance of the Hendon Tip Wall to the immediate south”.

The approach is also described as similar to recent and planned works to the Stonehill Wall, which sits further north within the Port of Sunderland.

Plans for the Hendon Foreshore Barrier were discussed by Sunderland City Council’s Planning and Highways Committee at a meeting on April 3, 2023, at City Hall.

In a report prepared for the decision-making panel, council planners deemed the scheme acceptable and recommended it for approval.

The council report said the development would “improve the established sea defences at the Port of Sunderland” and would “seek to mitigate the likely effects of climate change”.

It was also noted that the development would “have no negative impacts on the operation of the Port of Sunderland” and would be compatible within several flood zones.

After being put to the vote this week, the plans won unanimous support from the Planning and Highways Committee.

The project is expected to start this month and will take between 26 and 52 weeks to complete, with works “largely dictated by available access and sea states during construction”.

The existing Hendon Foreshore Barrier comprises a seawall, approximately 150m in length, and was first constructed in around 1930.

The sea wall also provides coastal defence to the northern part of the Northumbrian Water Limited (NWL) Hendon Sewage Treatment Works.

In recent years, rock armour has been used as an emergency measure to prevent further erosion at part of the structure.

New works are located towards the southern end of the Port of Sunderland, south of Hudson Dock and east of the NWL Hendon Sewage Treatment Works.

A council report confirms the ‘rock armourstone’ for the project would be delivered by sea to the Port of Sunderland from a granite quarry in either Scotland or Norway and would be offloaded into a temporary storage area.

For more information on the planning application visit Sunderland City Council’s online planning portal and search reference: 22/02501/LP3