Thousands of homes will soon be at risk due to the “catastrophic impacts of coastal erosion”, the author of a report into the phenomenon has warned. 

The study, Managing Coastal Risks in Ireland: Towards strategies that integrate planned coastal relocations, which has been published by the Climate Change Council has urged the Government to put together a national Coastal Change Adaptation Framework.

On Newstalk Breakfast, Dr Eugene Farrell of University Galway predicted that huge disruption is “coming down the line”. 

“A 2022 Government report reported that 2,279 houses are currently at risk from erosion and flooding and that jumps to 4,446 by 2050 - which is not too far away,” he explained. 

“What's interesting about that report, that's only based on eight local authorities reporting out of 19 counties with coastlines. 

“So, the number will triple or even quadruple, we don't know. 

“There are some gaps in the knowledge and at the same time, they noted that 570 kilometers of roads are at risk currently.”

Dr Farrell noted that coastal erosion has already worsened around the country and this will mean “tough decisions” have to be made. 

“Now, those decisions will be on how we manage these parts of the coastline?” he said. 

“Will we protect them using hard defenses? Which is an optimal solution for many people. 

“There are issues with expense and environmental damage from these approaches - also, they're not sustainable with sea level rise projections.” 

House on the coast as seen from the Ballingskelligs Bay Beach in Waterville, County Kerry. Picture by: Alamy.com.

However, he added that for some people, it will simply not be sustainable for them to remain in their homes. 

“There are going to be locations where it is better, not just for the environment, but also for the people to actually relocate them,” he warned. 

“Now, it's obviously very complex because there's legal, social, financial, planning, and community issues all intertwined with the environmental and engineering decisions. 

“So, I guess this report is a first step in providing, maybe kick-starting the Government into action.”

The report calls for new legislation addressing coastal change and relocations, as well as a national framework for compensation. 

“Any interventions are ad hoc and they're reactive,” Dr Farrell said. 

“When, in fact, what we do know, and looking at international precedents, that we need to look at the long game here and actually plan for, essentially, what's going to be potentially catastrophic impacts of coastal erosion.”

Main image: Houses by the sea in County Kerry. Picture by: Alamy.com.