Beach Management Plan: "There is widespread scepticism of the process and little regard shown to the local understanding of what the real issues might be."

The District Council have issued a press release on the last BMP meeting - which appears to be understandably optimistic but failing to sound the depths;
Futures Forum: Beach Management Plan: District Council press release on meeting of 9th August > "£2.4million funding shortfall"

However, there is widespread scepticism of the process and little regard shown to the local understanding of what the real issues might be.

In which case, for all the steamrollering of process, the authorities cannot expect to gain the extra funding demanded from people who do not trust the way they have fixed the evidence and the direction of travel.

Nevertheless, with a new consultant and a new Chair of the BMP's steering group, there might be further opportunities for real dialogue...

Finally, the 'preferred option' of the Sidmouth members of the steering group was not more rock groynes but more rock breakwaters.

The Special Feature article in the Herald - ''Seafront resident of 60 years John Govier writes about Sidmouth sea defences" - provides clear backing for this:

Futures Forum: Beach Management Plan: "In the long-term, we need to build more offshore breakwaters across the front and these could be semi-submerged so that they would not be visible for most of the time."

More off-shore breakwaters, as suggested by Mr Govier, was the Sidmouth members' preferred option by far - but EDDC has said it is too expensive: and yet the authorities have declined to provide full details of the estimates of the options to steering group members when asked to do so.

Here is an illustration of the option preferred by the Sidmouth members of the steering group - namely Option 4b:

See the history of these 'options':

Futures Forum: Beach Management Plan: a 'preferred option' is an extra half-a-metre high wall along Sidmouth's promenade
Futures Forum: Beach Management Plan: 'technically favoured' option or 'preferred' option - and 'preferred' by whom?
Futures Forum: Beach Management Plan: all agencies support both options
Futures Forum: Beach Management Plan: looking for funding for the 'technically preferred' option 4bFutures Forum: Beach Management Plan: Local stakeholders welcome project consultant's report >>> Options S4 and S4b "technically preferred"
Futures Forum: Beach Management Plan: Option 4b or not 4b >>> or: how to ignore everyone else's opinion
Futures Forum: Beach Management Plan: "It is very important to get comments in: the public is in a very strong position to comment on which option it believes will deliver the best seafront for the town - and DEFRA will take that into consideration."
Futures Forum: Beach Management Plan: compiling a short list of options
.
.
.