WA town sliding into ocean gets funding for temporary sea wall

Lancelin erosion fight gets boost with sea wall funding In short: The WA government has committed $1.1 million towards a rock wall aimed at slowing down the impacts of erosion in Lancelin. The local shire and impacted business owners have welcomed the temporary solution. But advocates say it may create increased erosion impacts for other beachfront residents. A small coastal town fighting to stop its pub and caravan park from sliding into the sea has been given a $1.1 million lifeline from the WA government. Residents of Lancelin, about 125 kilometres north of Perth, have been trying to save their town from worsening erosion for more than a year, with pub owner Glen Trebilcock telling the ABC he had seen about 50 metres of the northern part of the beach disappear in 15 months. Today the state government announced it would give $1.1 million towards the construction of a 110m-long rock wall, touted as an interim solution to the town's vanishing shorelines. The Shire of Gingin will also kick in $150,000 towards the project, which is expected to provide protection from erosion for about five years. Lancelin Sands Hotel owner Glen Trebilcock said he had spent about $10,000 on sand alone to protect his business, and the planned new wall would "mitigate any further potential damage and ensure the longevity of our town". But critics say it is not enough. Save Lancelin Community Coalition member Kirsty Harding described it as "woefully inadequate" and said the wall would only protect the pub and the adjacent Lancelin North End Caravan Park. "It protects two properties only, which is great for these properties that are at the most imminent risk, but it doesn't protect the Lancelin community," she said. "There's a longer length of dune that's really rapidly eroding too, and that now sits at the edge of where this structure is proposed to go. "We're really happy something is being done but what about the rest of the town?" Shire of Gingin president Linda Balcombe welcomed the plan and said it would allow the town time to work out what was causing the erosion. "Until we know the answers, we don't know what the permanent solution is," she said. "This [funding] will allow us the time to collect the data." Ms Balcombe said designs for the temporary wall would go before the local council next week. Tenders for construction of the wall are expected in September.