Walton coastal erosion work on track for spring opening

About two metres of the Naze is lost to the sea each year

A major scheme to preserve The Naze in Walton is well under way with work set for completion by spring 2011.

Work on the £1.2m coastal erosion project began in November after locals campaigned for 25 years to save it.

More than 20,000 tonnes of granite rock has been shipped in which will be used for the access and viewing platforms.

"They are bang on target to get this thing up and running by the spring," said Neil Stock, Tendring District Council leader.

"Things were delayed by the bad weather by a couple of weeks, not by the snow so much, but by stormy weather out at sea which was causing them a few problems," said Cllr Stock.

The project includes creating a walkway - 'Crag Walk' - a 110 metre long rock walkway along the crumbling cliffs and putting in five interpretation boards that will provide information about the area, its wildlife and the Tower.

"The Essex Wildlife Trust are going to manage the site for us," said Cllr Stock.

"It's going to be a fantastic feature where you can go and look at some of the fossils and cliff erosion, but at the same time we are not going to lose one of our great assets," he added.

The Crag Walk initiative is part of the Naze Heritage Project which was granted planning permission by Tendring District Council in August.

The cliffs contain 55 million year old fossils and are designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest.