What future for The Landslip?

The dramatic landslip that afflicted the area appropriately known as The Landslip leaves questions about the future of this south-east portion of our coastline.

It's been a terrible time for people's who's homes sit besides a (for now?) much less stable cliff and landslip system. Although most owners have been allowed to move back into their homes, some haven't. The stress must be hard to bear.

The Smuggler's Haven Tea Room, for a long time one of my favourit places to read and work, it literally teetering on the edge of a new, shear cliff face. It's lost its toilet block and its car park looks too close to the edge be useable. The new owners only re-opened their cafe in May this year. I really hope they can continue. That the situation stabelises.

What of the Leeson Road, the main link between Shanklin and Ventnor and the Undercliff? The new landslip cliff edge is but a few metres from the cariageway. At its closest, just the cafe and what's left of its car cark seperate road from landslides.

What about the wildlife? Well, and this may come as a surprise, I think wildlife will thrive. The old Sycamore woods here were certainly rich in wildlife. But much of the really rare wildlife for which the Undercliff is renowned actually thrives in very active landslip systems. The mosaic of bare, parched cliffs, friable chalk and sandy screes, annual wildflower communities, seepages and pools and, soon, emerging shrubby habitat - all this is heaven as far as our rarer species are concerned. The Red Squirrels will have lost some woodland habitat, but so many other species will have gained from their loss.

What now for The Landslip? Looking at the base of these cliffs (please don't go down their for a look: Mark's photo above is illustrative), one can see huge new scree slopes where spoil has tumbled down onto the beach from the cliffs and terraces above. The sea is already working away at the toe of these slopes, pulling spoil away and ensuring the slopes above reman active and very unstable. As the toe of the cliffs continue to be washed at by the sea, so the ground above will continue to move.

Can the toe of these cliffs be defended with hard sea walls, as cliffs are a little way further west, from Monk's Bay to Ventnor? I'd say, no. The immediate cliffs are far less stable and far higher. Any sea wall would be very quickly submerged in falling debrise and probably pushed aside by the weight of descending ground above.

It's not just erosion at the base of the cliffs here that ensure they remain active and unstable. Its water percolating from the downs and farmland inland. This perculation is very slow. The water we're seeing now is (December 2023) the result of August's rainfall. We still have water from the very wet October and November to find its way through to the The Landslip. What will January and February bring in terms of previous rainfall working its way into The Landslip?

Leeson Road is desperately important to the economy and well-being of the Undercliff. I fear it may not survive the winter. If we have a calm winter storm-wise, it may well be ok, for now. If we get may easterly or southerly gales, the picture will likely be less positive. Is there an engineering solution to saving Leeson Road? I can't see one myself.

To my mind we need to start looking at various options for improving transport options into the eastern Undercliff. Newport Road - the grabon by the chippy - needs a long-term engineering solution. The 'patch-and-mend' approach taken in recent years isn't working.

Is it time to re-visit opening the rainway? Could some kind of light rail be accommodated within the tunnel alongside Southern Water's infrastructure? Seems to me that the case for at least further investigation is now pretty strong.

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