A bold new intiative received Defra approval in 2002. In it, the whole of the Southeast of England coastline will be subject to regular and harmonised monitoring. Worthing Borough Council is the lead authority and project manager the central (South Downs) part of the Project. Canterbury City Council and New Forest District Council are leading and project managing the eastern and western sections respectively.

In the monitoring scheme beaches, cliffs, the seabed, tides, waves and many other facets of the coastal environment will be examined and recorded. The data gathered will be stored centrally and be available interactively over the web. The scheme is in its infancy, with several of the elements currently setting their foundations and establishing 'networking' links; not least the "Observatory". A new website has been established by the observatory solely for disseminating the results and findings of the monitoring project.

For more information about the content of these pages please contact coastal.defence@arun.gov.uk.