Village could see £160,000 fund used to tackle rising seawater issues

A Moray village is in line to benefit from a £160,000 action plan to help deal with the impact of climate change along its shoreline.

Members of Moray Council’s economic development and infrastructure committee will be asked to give the go-ahead for a coastal change adaptation plan for Kingston at a meeting next week.

The money for the project will come from a £12m Scottish Government fund for local authorities to come up with proposals to combat the impact of rising sea water and more severe storms on coastal communities.

Kingston has been chosen as it has the most active part of the Moray coastline.

Residents in the village, which is situated on the west side of the River Spey, have raised concerns about a shingle ridge that sits to the north of a tidal lagoon, and reduces the impact of waves on the land.

Council officers have monitored the situation over the last nine years with little significant movement noticed until a storm in October last year, which pushed shingle from the ridge into the lagoon reducing its width and causing damage to the land bank.

In his report, senior engineer Will Burnish said: “Managing coastal erosion risk is a complex process due to the nature of the shingle bank and sediment movements.

“In this location, this is due to the high sediment load which is carried down the River Spey combined with the sediment drift along Spey Bay.

“This area of coastline is also a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a Special Area of Conservation, which means there will be restrictions on the type of works that could be undertaken at the site.”

The £160,000 is expected in the financial year 2022/23 and must be spent within 12 months. It is thought more funding will become available after 2025.