Old sea wall coming down as Jubilee Green works continue in Saltash

Anyone who has walked the riverside path at Jubilee Green over the summer will have watched the shoreline slowly change shape. Now another stretch of the old concrete wall holding back the Tamar is about to come down for good.

Rock armour reaches the next stretch

Saltash Town Council has shared a progress update from Cormac on the Jubilee Green coastal defence scheme, confirming that the latest section of rock armour along the shoreline is now complete.

The project team has started removing the old concrete river wall between the 115 metre and 120 metre marks. Once that section has been cleared, the next run of rock armour will go in behind it, continuing the sequence of removal and replacement along the bank.

Cormac is delivering the works on behalf of Cornwall Council, with support from the Climate Adaptation Programme. Full project updates, including this one, are being posted on the council’s Let’s Talk page for the scheme.

Why the wall needed to go

The revetment that has protected the seawall and riverbank at Jubilee Green, along with the boat park, green space and car park behind it, was found during routine inspections to be deteriorating and in a failing condition. Jubilee Green also sits within the SSSI Impact Risk Zone for the Tamar Tavy Estuary, so the environmental and heritage sensitivity of the site has shaped how the scheme is being carried out.

The fix is rock armour, set deeper into the estuary channel bed with a geotextile matting layer to cut down on movement and scour. Around 4,000 tonnes of it are being delivered to site over the course of the scheme, brought in by road from the A38 along Old Ferry Road in short, concentrated bursts of a few days at a time.

Site mobilisation began on 11 May, with construction under way since 18 May for what was set out as a roughly twenty-week programme. Working hours are normally 8am to 4pm, though the tide has the final say, so starts and finishes shift earlier or later depending on the day.

Getting around while the work continues

The footpath closure already in place at Jubilee Green stays in force, and will remain closed until the gap-filling stage begins towards the end of the project. It is there to keep both the public and the site team safe while heavy materials are being moved along the shoreline.

Parking at the Jubilee Green car park is also reduced while the site compound and material storage are in use, though the project has said the number of spaces taken up will come down as the works progress. Pedestrian, vehicle and emergency access are all being maintained throughout, and boat launches remain available, though some waiting time should be expected.

Cormac has thanked residents and businesses for their patience while the work continues. Anyone with a question about the scheme can reach the team on 0300 1234 222 or by emailing [email protected].