Christchurch "neglected" after Avon Beach covered in seaweed

The “foul odour” which drew dozens of complaints and was put down to rotting seaweed and bacteria has now passed, Cllr Lesley Dedman said, but seaweed still plagues the beach.

Cllr Dedman said: “The great stink, we are calling it, has gone, it doesn’t smell anymore.

“It makes you think that all the people that said it was seaweed was rubbish.

“I don’t know what the wrong thing was, but it’s gone, but the beach is covered in seaweed.

“The local residents have all been quite vocal. The Noisy Lobster has a lease which states that it clears its bit of the beach from litter which it does, and the council clears the seaweed.

“The sad part is we get holidaymakers with little children, they have to wade over the seaweed and when you are in the sea you get draped in it.

“This would not happen if it was on Bournemouth beach, Christchurch is being neglected.

“People who come here don’t realise what the beach is normally like.”

Peter Hayward, of the Noisy Lobster, said the restaurant was still busy but it was a “shame” they had not had the support from the council.

He said: “It could be improved, the issue is the large amount of seaweed on the beach.

“It’s quite clearly the landlord’s obligation to clear it which is BCP Council.

“This year the council have not been sufficient and as a result you are getting complaints.

“People are going into the sea and enjoying themselves, but it could be and should be better, it’s the council’s responsibility to make it better.

“In previous years they have been quite responsive, this year it has been known to them for four or five weeks.

“I think people are still enjoying the beach but it’s a shame we have not had support from the council.”

The son of a woman who’d owned her beach hut for more than 50 years said the problem was worse last week and could put tourists off.

He said: “It’s a significant improvement from last week but there’s still some residue.

“With people staycationing, they come down and if there’s seaweed they need to wade through it, they’ll think they won’t stay here again and the area can thrive off tourism for years to come.”

A BCP Council spokesperson said: “Over the last couple of months we’ve had several large storms, with the subsequent tidal conditions bringing an excess of seaweed onto Avon Beach in Christchurch.

“We removed the bulk of it last Thursday, with the small amount of remaining seaweed being intertidal, between high and low tide which can’t be removed.

“We will continue to monitor the seaweed at Avon Beach and remain in regular contact with all our partners to ensure there are no safety concerns on any of our beaches.”