Highlands and Islands Airports Limited (HIAL) has completed a 16-month, £5.3 million coastal engineering project to protect Stornoway Airport in Scotland from the effects of coastal erosion. Without the land restoration project the loss of the sand dunes shielding the airfield and taxiway had placed the airport at risk of flooding during severe weather and storm conditions.
The project, which consisted of a 3/4 mile stretch between the villages of Branahuie and Melbost saw more than 36,000 tonnes of rock armour placed and landscaped on the beach sides of the runway embankment. Additional rock armour was then used to protect the seaward face with the construction of reno mattresses (a type of steel, wire-mesh basket) consisting of 22,000 tonnes of stone created beneath the beach and 2,081 baskets filled with stone built on top to reinforce the beach and prevent the sea from eroding the land. A furhter 14,058 tonnes of rock armour stone was then positioned on the headland at the end of the runway.
“We are extremely pleased that these works have been completed and which will be of massive benefit to the long-term future of Stornoway Airport and to the coastal defences of the Western Isles,” said Duncan C M Smith, HIAL General Manager West working at Stornoway Airport.
HIAL’s COO also noted: “This project was an extremely important one as part of our ongoing commitment to support essential connectivity for our island communities. The significant investment made will protect the long-term future of the airport and vital air connections for the communities of the Western Isles.”
“When we notice that coastal erosion was becoming a significant issue on the north-east quartile of the beach next to the airport, plans were swiftly put in place to restore the coastal defences and maintain airport infrastructure which would all have been at risk if the work had not been carried out,” he added.
