Galloper Wind Farm Project - National Infrastructure Planning

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except along the coast. They are more often of brick than
flint and occasionally display Dutch influence, except perhaps
in Thorpeness which is a largely weather-boarded, eccentric
1920s holiday resort. Felixstowe is an important seaport and
holiday resort with extensive suburbs.
South of Lowestoft, the coast is largely undeveloped with a
coast road only between Aldeburgh and Thorpeness. It is a
subtle landscape of low crumbling cliffs and steep shingle
banks, sweeping in a series of wide bays punctuated by
lighthouses, church towers, Martello towers and the
inappropriate mass of the Sizewell nuclear power stations.
This open, exposed character contrasts with the sheltered
peace of the estuaries, whether at high tide, when the often
well-wooded undulating valley sides meet the water, or at
low tide, when vast expanses of glistening mudflat are home
to migratory waders and seabirds. The Stour and Orwell
estuaries are wide and relatively straight, busy with
commercial and recreational craft. The Deben, too, is
popular with sailors but in the smaller estuaries of the Blyth
and Alde boating is limited to the lower reaches, as extensive
areas of drained marsh encroach on navigable water.
The Orwell bridge which was, at the time of its opening in
1982, one of the largest concrete structures in Europe,
marks the boundary between the town of Ipswich and the
tranquil parkland that fringes the Orwell downstream.
This is still wild country in parts, although tamed away
from the estuaries and shingle coast, with a general sense
that nature is in the ascendant despite human efforts to
tame her. The windblown plantations of Tunstall and
Rendlesham forests, relics of the 1987 storm, are still a
poignant reminder of this.
Physical Influences
The coastal area is generally flat, indented with estuaries, with
gentle undulations and variation as the river valleys reach
inland. Changing sea levels in prehistoric times ‘drowned’ the
river valleys that had been enlarged by the meltwaters of the
Anglian Glaciation, creating this subtle, low-lying landscape.
The soils are of glacial sand, gravel and local till in origin,
covering the Crag deposits which lie along the eastern coast
area. These sands and gravels are spread in narrow,
discontinuous tracts along the coast from Yarmouth to
Aldeburgh, spreading inland and extending over a low plateau
past Woodbridge to Ipswich, giving rise to the characteristic
variation in landcover that is such a feature of the area.
The primary influence on this area is the sea which shapes
and changes the coastline and constantly threatens to destroy
or engulf it. The land is not cut off from the sea by high
walls, as in North East Norfolk and Flegg, but by low sea
walls or dunes because much of the saltmarsh area in the
estuaries lies below sea level. North of Sizewell and
Southwold, small cliffs mark the boundary between land and
sea. This is a mobile, generally receding coastline as fallen
material is washed from the base of the cliffs, some to be
deposited farther south on the long spit at Orford Ness.
The pattern of drift geology and water action is
demonstrated clearly in the Stour and Orwell valleys. There
the rivers and tributaries incised the till plateau which abuts
this area to the west, revealing on the lower valley sides a
variety of sands, gravels, Crag and pockets of the underlying
London clay. The natural harbour formed at the confluence
of these two rivers has had a major impact on the visual
appearance of the estuaries and inland, as both river and road
transport developed to further trade. The historic industrial
influence of the Stour navigation is now lost amid cricket-bat
willows and meadows, but Harwich, Felixstowe and Ipswich
have all developed as important commercial ports.
Major developments have a strong influence along this otherwise
unspoilt coast. Beyond Thorpeness loom the nuclear power
stations of Sizewell A and B which dominate the low-lying coastline
for miles in each direction, as do the power lines that emanate
from them.The area in the foreground is a nature reserve.
Historical and Cultural Influences
The Suffolk Coast and Heaths area has a long history of
settlement since Neolithic times, beginning in the areas of
light soil and along the river valleys. Woodland clearance
during this period began the process of heathland creation
so characteristic of the area. The Romans contributed roads
and trading settlements, while the Anglo Saxons left a series
of cemetery sites and burial mounds. At Sutton Hoo, on
the banks of the Deben opposite Woodbridge, there is the
royal cemetery of the Wuffingas, the first Anglo-Saxon
rulers of East Anglia, including the sumptuous ship burial
of King Raedwald (c. 625AD). The Sutton Hoo treasure is
on display in the British Museum.
JOHN TYLER/COUNTRYSIDE AGENCY