By Pamela McGowan

Last updated at 13:22, Tuesday, 09 February 2010

Tidal barrages proposed for the Solway could actually increase the risk of flooding to nearby areas, claim wildlife campaigners.

Birds fly over Powfoot bay in the Solway Firth

Bird charity the RSPB has obtained an official report looking at the consequences of a similar barrier built in The Netherlands during the 1980s.

It details the flood impact, as well as the devastating effects it has had on wildlife, fishing, tourism and shipping.

The Dutch report focuses on the storm surge barrier in the Oosterschelde estuary – which the RSPB believes has very similar characteristics to the Solway Firth.

It believes the results should offer a stark warning to those behind the feasibility study announced last week.

This will look at how green energy can be harnessed from the Cumbrian seas, with options ranging from tidal barrages to reefs and lagoons.

The most dramatic option would be to build an 18-mile barrage from Workington to Abbey Head, near Kirkcudbright, in Scotland. This would cost £16bn and have a capacity 32 times greater than the Robin Rigg windfarm.

Shorter schemes are also being considered along the coast, at Bowness-on-Solway and Skinburness.

But although the RSPB agrees that the Solway has the potential to produce significant renewable energy, it stresses that barrages are only one option for capturing energy from the tide.

Instead, it wants those behind the feasibility study to favour newer technologies that would have less impact on the local environment.

The Dutch report found the barrage had caused mudflats along its estuary to erode, leading to higher waves and water levels. By 2050, it is predicted that tidal flats of the Oosterschelde will have more than halved.

And the RSPB says huge sums would therefore need to be spent on better coastal defences to protect lives and property here in Cumbria.

The loss of tidal flats, and also the nearby salt marshes would also have a major impact on many birds and other wildlife.

For example, the reports claims that in the Netherlands, oystercatcher numbers will have crashed 80 per cent by 2045, with other species “awaiting the same fate”.

It also claims that shipping channels will become shallower and harder to navigate, while the shellfish trade will be hit by loss of habitat and tourism will be hit by the loss of wildlife interest.

Peter Robertson, the RSPB’s conservation manager for northern England, said: “This report makes grim reading. It is the closest we can get to proof that the creation of a barrage across an estuary would cause devastation.

“The Oosterschelde is very similar to estuaries in the north west in many ways and it is being damaged beyond repair. We must ensure that the same fate does not befall the estuaries [here].”

He added that the Dutch had no prior warning about what would happen – but we do.

“The Dutch built their barrier to prevent deadly storms from claiming lives,” said Mr Robertson.

“Ironically, it has now led to an increased risk of flooding behind the barrier. But it could be argued they had little choice at the time.

“We do have a choice. Barrages would not be built to stop storm surges but to harness the tides and generate electricity. There are other, far less environmentally damaging ways to do that.

“We only have one opportunity to get this right so we need to explore all potential solutions.”

First published at 11:24, Tuesday, 09 February 2010
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk