"When Charis Duthie moved to Johnshaven with her husband in 1984, she could cycle along the coastal path out of the village. Now, she meets a dead end where the sea has snatched the land and is instead greeted with a big red warning sign of what is to come: Danger Coastal Erosion. You can see gardens that were there and now they're gone, she says."
"The north-east coast of Scotland is experiencing a rapidly worsening erosion problem that will only be exacerbated by recurrent patterns of extreme weather and rising sea levels. Johnshaven, a small village with a close-knit community of 640 people about 30 miles (48km) south of Aberdeen, is particularly exposed. The village's paths bear the scars of coastal erosion in the form of craters in the well-trodden rock, while some, such as the one Duthie points to, have disappeared altogether."
"Finding a solution to the problem has taken on an urgency like never before. Three years ago came the announcement of the Platinum Jubilee Path, named in honour of Queen Elizabeth II's 70 years on the throne. The aim is for it to start in St Cyrus, four miles south of Johnshaven, and end about 90 miles further north in Cullen, a village with close associations to Robert the Bruce."
Sea-driven erosion has transformed Johnshaven's coastal path into collapsed rock, lost gardens and warning signs; recent storms removed sections of the route in 2023. Recurrent extreme weather and rising sea levels are accelerating shoreline loss along Scotland's north-east coast, leaving communities exposed. Johnshaven's economy has contracted as fishing and oil and gas markets decline, prompting efforts to boost visitor numbers through a continuous coastal route. Plans for the Platinum Jubilee Path aim to link St Cyrus to Cullen and close a gap in Scotland's Great Trails, but advancing erosion and damaged paths complicate trail development and local access.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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