The incident took place at Penarth Head in the Vale of Glamorgan, and environmental campaigners from Friends of the Earth have warned it highlights shortcomings in how the draft Replacement Local Development Plan (RLDP) addresses coastal erosion.
The group said the Vale of Glamorgan Council is relying on the 2005 Shoreline Management Plan, which the Welsh Government reportedly instructed the council to update in 2020 to reflect more recent sea level and storm intensity predictions.
However the council rejects this, saying the document is regularly updated.
Friends of the Earth said: “Not only is the draft RLDP complacent, it’s also wrong in accepting Shoreline Management Planning dating from 2005.
“The RLDP has to use the current policy documents to specify the coastal areas for action and time-scales.
“They need to show real urgency to comply with the 2020-21 policy change to meet coastal storms and coastal erosion.”
The group said Penarth is a particular area of concern following the recent cliff fall.
They argue that the previously recommended “hold the line” policy is outdated and that new approaches must be adopted that reflect increased wave action and erosion risk.
Friends of the Earth said: “No longer can the Vale dismiss episodes of wave overtopping the Esplanade and flooding its commercial premises as ‘exceptional’.”
In response, the council said the group’s references to outdated management plans are incorrect.
A Vale of Glamorgan Council spokesperson said: “The statement incorrectly refers to the Shoreline Management Plan as a document prepared in 2005 that requires replacement.
“There have been many versions since then, the latest being SMP19: Anchor Head to Lavernock Point.”
The authority said the RLDP is not the appropriate tool for specifying coastal defence strategies.
The council spokesperson said: “While the Council must consider the latest climate change evidence, Welsh Government policy and Natural Resources Wales (NRW) guidance, it is important to distinguish between the strategic role of the Replacement Local Development Plan (RLDP) and the more detailed operational requirements of coastal risk management.
“The RLDP is informed by the relevant coastal evidence base, but it is not the mechanism through which detailed defence specifications, monitoring triggers or engineering interventions are normally established.”
