In 2016, Beckett Rankine was commissioned to inspect a river frontage along Deptford Creek, on behalf of a client looking to develop the land behind the river wall. They wanted to know the wall’s condition as well as understand any future liabilities or interface issues they may encounter.
We conducted an inspection from land, vessel and the foreshore. The wall was a steel sheet pile with some timber cladding in places, found in generally good condition. There was some corrosion to the capping beam and other minor defects, for which we recommended continued monitoring and maintenance.
We also found that the ties and anchors posed some challenges for the development, so we recommended further investigations and proposed solutions for the client to avoid issues in the development.
The Environment Agency require a 100-year life span for developments, which included the river wall. We determined that the wall had a predicted 40-year life span remaining, and so we returned in 2020 to establish what steps could be taken to satisfy the EA’s requirements.
The two options were to plan a wall replacement in 40 years’ time or replace the wall immediately to have the full 100-year life span. The existing anchoring system clashed with the development plans, so we explored alternative options that could enable the development to continue.
Considerations were taken for how much of a building setback would be required for each option and how this would impact the wider development plans. The client was then equipped to navigate the appropriate consents and licenses to proceed with their preferred option.
