Views wanted on coastline future

Events will be held to look at different areas of the plan

People who live along the coast of the Severn Estuary are being asked for their views on how to best manage the coastline over the next 100 years.

The area covers from Weston-super-Mare to Gloucestershire and Penarth.

The Severn Estuary Coastal Group is carrying out a review of its nine-year-old shoreline management plan.

Topics are likely to include improving flood defences and ensuring future developments are not put at higher risk of flood or coastal erosion.

The public consultation process, which is now under way, closes on 8 January 2010.

People will then be asked to comment on the proposed policies that have been drafted.

It is important that the decisions we all make today do not put additional burdens on future generations Dave Harris Severn Estuary Coastal Group

A number of events will be held over the coming months that will look at several areas of the Severn Estuary Shoreline Management Plan.

These will include the history of shoreline management plans, what work has already been done and asking people for their thoughts on what should be done in the future.

Dave Harris, chairman of the Severn Estuary Coastal Group, said: "There are thousands of residential and commercial properties in the Severn Estuary at risk from flooding, erosion and climate change, as well as farms, historically important areas and environmental sites.

"We need to plan now for changes in the future.

"It is important that the decisions we all make today do not put additional burdens on future generations."