Bangor: Work on £4.3m sea defence project to start

A multi-million pound scheme to reinforce sea defences in Bangor is starting this month.

It's intended to protect more than 190 properties in the lower Hirael part of the city.

The work, expected to take about 10 months, has been hailed as good news.

The once thriving fishing community has been blighted by flooding for years, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The £4.3m project is being funded by Gwynedd council and the Welsh government, which is picking up 85% of the costs.

While engineering work to alleviate the flood risk from the River Adda was completed in 2008, they remain a hazard.

"With current sea level rise predictions due to climate change, the main risk to Hirael now comes from tidal flooding," project managers YGC said.

Welsh government climate change minister, Julie James, said: "Coastal communities must adapt to rising sea levels and this scheme will help do just that."

Gwynedd council's Berwyn Parry Jones warned the work may be noisy and disruptive but added: "Rising sea levels are a real problem for coastal areas like Gwynedd."