Surf war breaks out over dune repairs

ONE of Scotland's best-known surfing spots is at the centre of claims that a holiday park owner has damaged the reef responsible for the unique waves.

Pease Bay, near Dunbar, in East Lothian, is renowned for the surf break created by the rock formation near the beauty spot's caravan park. But surfers claim its iconic status has been put at risk by emergency work to repair sand dunes in front of the holiday park.

Enthusiasts have circulated pictures online of a JCB digger removing rocks from below the high tide line last month. Simon Dunham, the owner of Pease Bay Caravan Park, has denied any wrongdoing, despite admitting carrying out work to rebuild the dunes after they were destroyed in a storm earlier this year.

An official investigation led by Scottish Borders Council has found no evidence of planning rules being flouted.

Pease Bay was the first regular surfing spot to emerge on Scotland's east coast after being discovered by pioneer Andy Bennetts in 1968. It hosts several surfing competitions and is thought to be the nation's busiest area for the sport.

Alasdair Steele, spokesman for the Surfers Against Sewage campaign group, said: "Despite having assurances from Scottish Borders Council that no minerals were removed from below the high tide mark, we have photographs showing a digger and dump truck sitting past the tide line - why else would they be there?

"There is a great hole in the beach that wasn't there before. This raises some issues; any work that takes place on the seabed should have asked the Crown Estate for permission, and the Coastal Protection Act would require this type of work to be granted planning permission."

Surfer Jason Burnett, 34, from Rosewell, Midlothian, claimed it was not only the wave that would be affected by the work but also the entire eco-system.

He said: "The rocks are actually a natural sea defence and as well as creating the break that forms the wave, they also actually protect the beach. We don't know what long-term effects moving the rock will have on not only the wave but also the implications for the neighbouring stretches of coastline.

"If there are no laws to stop people messing about with the seabed, then what is there to stop this sort of thing happening again? Or what is there to stop us taking a JCB and replacing all the moved rocks?

"This isn't an ownership issue - no-one can lay claim to the sea. It's about respecting our environment and doing everything we can to protect it."

However, a council spokesman said: "Officers from the planning department have investigated, in association with other agencies, alleged unauthorised works at Pease Bay relating to the beach and dunes area. The outcome of the investigation is that a planning breach has not occurred and that a planning application will not be required."

Mr Dunham said: "We needed to stabilise the dunes and we used quarried stones from Haddington - I even have receipts from the quarry to prove that.

"We did use some river bottoming from the main river on site that had been washed on to the beach, but we didn't use anything from below the high tide line. We have no interest in upsetting the local surf community and, as far as I can tell, it hasn't affected the waves."