A MAJOR sea defence scheme to save Clacton and Holland-on-Sea’s crumbling cliffs has been put through its paces.

Amodel for the £36million project, which is due to get under way in about a year, has undergone testing by experts at HR Wallingford, in Oxfordshire.

The hydraulics research establishment checked the design under exacting conditions, recreating what would happen along the coastline in heavy storms. Some extra modelling is to be undertaken, which will help to refine the scheme even further and could help to reduce the cost in certain areas.

A delegation from Tendring Council visited the site, along with representatives of their project managers at contractor Mott MacDonald and the Environment Agency.

Nick Turner, councillor responsible for coast protection, said: “I was extremely impressed both by the science being applied and the level of detail put into creating the model, which took around 13 weeks to achieve.

“They have made a concrete floor and built up the exact shape of the sea bed, based on surveys which have been carried out at sea.

“The beach has been created at the same angle and it is as close to the real thing as you could possibly get. They are then able to run waves, correct to scale for a spring high tide, for several hours and see how the design reacts after taking a battering, as it would along our coast.”

The scheme will see the construction of 23 fish tail groynes, around 90metres long, along the 5km stretch of coast. The project is funded by Tendring Council, Essex County Council and the Environment Agency, which is paying £27million towards the cost.