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Knights Brown has been appointed under a two stage design & build contract for the 拢29.4m Poole Bridge to Hunger Hill flood defence scheme.
The infrastructure has been designed not just to protect the area from tidal flooding but also to support its long-term regeneration.
Delivered in partnership with Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole (BCP) Council and South West Flood & Coastal, the scheme will provide 1.5km of continuous flood defences along the eastern side of Holes Bay.聽
Construction begins this month on the stretch between Holes Bay Path and Lifeboat Quay), where the height of the pathways will be raised to 2.65 metres AOD (above ordnance datum 鈥� or above sea level in old money) by upgrading embankments and rock revetments.
Work on the stretch between the RNLI car park and Poole Bridge is due to start in the autumn and will comprise a 3.6-metre AOD steel tubular and sheet-piled wall with flood gates. Both zones will take approximately 18 months to complete.
Due to salt marsh and mud flat ecosystems that support wintering wading birds and wildfowl, Holes Bay is designated as a Wetland of International Importance (under the Ramsar convention), Special Protection Area and Site of Special Scientific Interest. To protect marine wildlife a bubble curtain will be installed to ensure any sediment disturbed while work is underway is effectively contained. An ecological engineering technique featuring pole and pontoon hulas will be installed at key locations to increase marine biodiversity.
Matt Hosey, head of flood and coastal erosion risk management at BCP Council, said: 鈥淔or years, it was anticipated that the ongoing regeneration from Poole Bridge to Hunger Hill would result in comprehensive flood defences. However, recent developments have only delivered them along isolated sections, leaving significant gaps. This incomplete coverage exposes the wider area to tidal flooding, a risk that will increase in frequency and severity due to climate change. South West Flood & Coastal has been actively progressing the delivery of this essential, major and complex flood defence scheme, securing substantial funding contributions from Environment Agency Grant in Aid and BCP Council Strategic CIL [community infrastructure levy]. Through early contractor involvement, Knights Brown has contributed to enhancing the scheme鈥檚 buildability, shortening the construction programme and value-engineering costs, all while aiming to reduce environmental impacts.鈥�
Knights Brown divisional director Mike Crook said: 鈥淥ur extensive experience in coastal and marine civil engineering extends across southern England and Wales. This includes projects such as the North Portsea scheme where 1.9km of flood defences are currently under construction; a 1.2km concrete faced, stepped apron and sheet pile toe wall just completed at Mumbles, South Wales; and the Falklands Jetty upgrade at Marchwood Port in Southampton.鈥�
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