This report is well presented in the customary CIRIA style developed over the last 20 years. It relies heavily on block diagrams and bullet point lists, which sometimes interrupt the flow of the text but enable the relevant information to be presented in a compact style.
The report has a small summary and is divided into three main parts and appendices.
Part I Why managed retreat?
Part II How and where managed alignment can be achieved.
Part III Designing and implementing managed realignment.
Part I identifies where managed realignment might apply and deals comprehensively with legal, administrative and social issues. It was disappointing to note that ‘stakeholder involvement’ was not considered a design issue and there was an impression from the presentation that this aspect was a duty rather than a joy. The report provides good coverage of the physical process issues in Part III and the appendices but does not have a section ‘upfront’ that describes the rationale for managed realignment. As such it does not capture the interest of the browsing reader, gearing itself more for the active practitioner. This may of course be intentional but in my opinion misses an opportunity to get the message across on the value of this approach to shoreline management and quality of life from a non-vested interest base.
Part II gives the impression of hunting for suitable sites, which may apply for achieving BAP targets etc., but there is also the consideration of this option for any length of shoreline under the shoreline management plan process. This part of the report suffers from the need to consider physical processes but not wanting to pre-empt the more comprehensive coverage of such processes in Part III. A recognition of this difficulty could have been usefully included for the reader, thereby avoiding premature disappointment at finding such matters only cursorily addressed in Part II. Otherwise this section of the report covers the ground well and provides a useful reference on the appropriateness of managed realignment for a specific location.
Part III provides a sound introduction to designing and implementing managed realignment but regrettably includes occasional excursions into formulae, which are not sufficiently comprehensive and therefore out of place. The appendices cover the more mathematical aspects and it would have been better to maintain a clear separation here, leaving the text to describe the design and implementation issues with the appendices for more detailed and mathematical reference. Alternatively the graphs and formulae could be referenced in the text thereby preserving the context that is often lost in the extract quotation.
However, none of the criticisms above should detract from the essential value of this report, which fills a gap in knowledge not presently as well filled by other available references. As such, the report should be on hand for shoreline managers, planners, engineers and ecologists to help them provide the best advice for management of shorelines in the immediate future.
