During July and August the big hopper dredger Ham 813 became a familiar sight off shore, with the pipe spewing out sand at amazing speed and the bulldozers spreading it around.
Everyone is now waiting to see how the sand behaves as time goes on.
Though the project was dramatic, what got most publicity nationally were the sand martins which come from Africa each year and raise broods in holes burrowed into the cliffs. Nets were to be over any holes that would be covered by the 7 m of sand so that no birds would become trapped . But the contractors initially put nets on all the holes right up to the cliff top at Bacton, which were swiftly removed but not before an understandable national outcry, The sand martins seem to be fine and second broods have been seen, and a new colony in the cliffs towards Mundesley.
