A Suffolk engineer, known locally as King Canute, has lost the right to sure up coastal defences surrounding his cliff-top house, following an appeal by conservation watchdogs.
In December last year, 78-year-old Peter Boggis won a two-year High Court battle to protect his seaside home from invading coastal erosion. Judges ruled that his "human predicament" outweighed calls from conservationists, Natural England, to allow erosion for the sake of fossil discovery in the area.
But Natural England has successfully launched an appeal against Mr Boggis, following thousands of pounds worth of coastal construction. This week, judges agreed that the work was performed without planning permission and that Mr Boggis must now go through the correct channels in order to finish his 250,000 tonnes worth of compact soil defences.
Prior to the original ruling, Natural England declared the stretch of East Anglian coastline a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in 2006, preventing the pensioner from protecting his house. Mr Boggis has argued that his work, and that of his campaign, has so far saved eight acres of land and four properties "at no cost to the nation".
But, while Lord Justice Sullivan and fellow Lords claimed they were "not unsympathetic to the plight of Mr Boggis and other residents", the work amounted to a "continuing engineering operation" which requires planning permission and consent under the Coastal Protection Act 1949.
Mr Boggis, whose home is now only 92 metres from the cliff edge, has called the ruling "tragic" and vowed to take his case to the newly opened Supreme or European courts.
