One of the National Trust’s largest fundraising campaigns, the Neptune Coastline Campaign is an ongoing initiative that allows the charity to secure large sections of the coastline, with the aim of preserving the natural importance of coastlines for current and future generations to enjoy. In the UK, no-one lives more than 120 km (75 miles) away from the sea, so the coastline is a rather important part of not just the British landscape, but also of Britain’s culture. As part of this campaign, 1,250 km (775 miles) of coastline in England, Wales and Northern Ireland have been purchased by the charity – around three-quarters of this has been since 1965, when the campaign was initiated.
The campaign was sparked by a rise in coastal development during the years after World War II. Concerned about the effects that this would have on the natural landscape bordering the British shoreline, the National Trust conducted a survey – this involved students and staff from the University of Reading surveying the entire 8,000 miles of coastline in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, during the summer of 1965. They made detailed observations about land use types, observing that both leisure-related development, and large-scale heavy industrial usage, had increased rapidly in the post-war years. During Britain’s economic growth in the mid-20th Century, leisure holidays were becoming more popular, with caravan parks quickly opening along the coast. An increase in productivity also meant that several large steelworks and oil refineries were constructed close to the shoreline, and that previously-existing facilities were being expanded. The survey also identified 5,300 km (3,300) miles of ‘pristine’ coastline in need of protection in order to prevent further development – the National Trust felt a great need to do something about this due to rapid expansion.
In the decades since the 1960s, the National Trust has gone about purchasing 880 km (547 miles) of coastal land – in other words, 9.7% of the entire coastline within England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Much of this was made possible due to countless donations from members of the public. In 2014, the National Trust led a similar survey to the one carried out in 1965 to assess how land use on, and adjacent to, the coastline has changed over the past five decades. They found that the proportion of coastal land used for urban areas has increased between 1965 and 2014, with a city the size of Manchester being added to the coastline during this time period.
However, the amount of land used for caravans, and other holiday-related facilities, has increased at a lower rate than it did before the mid-1960s, and the charity acknowledges that the percentage of Ministry of Defence land bordering the coastline has decreased by a quarter. It is therefore fair to say that the actions of the National Trust have definitely played their part in mitigating coastal development, especially as owning land adjacent to the shoreline has sheltered these areas from the encroachment of industry, tourist-related facilities and residential homes. However, it is also fair to say that other like-minded landowners, as well as a significant tightening in British planning law, have also played their role in preserving the coastline.
The nature of infrastructure projects has changed over rather recent times, with challenges to the current planning system, the sea being used for new technologies, and shifts in what is deemed as part of our cultural heritage. In order to continue with the Neptune Coastline Campaign, the National Trust must adapt how the campaign operates to a changing world. The charity points out the current planning system is facing some challenges at the moment, and that it will continue to campaign and argue against such changes. Although the Neptune Coastline Campaign has so far been proven largely successful in safeguarding both the shoreline and the directly adjacent land area, the National Trust has turned its attention to the seaward side of the shoreline. Offshore wind, marine and tidal technologies that are used for power generation are becoming increasingly more common in marine areas – even where they are not close to the shore, they are often visible from much of the coastline.
The charity argues that this land use type, as well as new and existing oil and gas-related extraction facilities, can also have dramatic effects on seascapes, and lower people’s experience of the natural coastal and marine landscapes. To adapt to this, the charity is using effective marine planning in order to manage competing priorities in both its coastal and offshore environments. The National Trust argues that a joined-up and strategic approach is required when planning all offshore developments, in particular for large-scale infrastructure projects – they also aim to play a role in ‘speaking up’ for seascapes, including both seabed and marine environments.
Furthermore, changes in what is deemed part of our cultural heritage must also be taken into account. For example, in 1965, disused military structures, including ramparts and pillboxes, were viewed as a form of coastal pollution by both the charity and most visitors to the coastline. Today, however, such structures are widely seen as part of Britain’s historical and cultural heritage, with the National Trust preserving these, and even opening up some of these as museums.
The National Trust hopes to continue to defend a large section of the British coastline for at least the next 50 years, allowing future generations of people to continue to benefit from a tranquil and largely unspoilt coastal landscape. As the donations keep on coming in, the National Trust continues to acquire further coastal properties. A great example of this is the towering Great Orme headland in North Wales, which is located directly to the north of the seaside resort of Llandudno. Its purchase in 2015 ensures its defence against future development, as well as its effective management of both land use and land maintenance. Should this continue into the future, we will see more of the British coastline being preserved and protected.
Video Source: Daily Motion GreenTV