A new CoastSnap observation station has just been installed in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, on La Grande Côte beach in Saint-Palais-sur-Mer, Charente-Maritime. It is the 8th CoastSnap station in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, following Lacanau, Capbreton, Saint-Jean-de-Luz, Biscarrosse, La Brée-les-Bains, Mimizan and La Tremblade.
This citizen science initiative is part of the Observatoire de la côte de Nouvelle-Aquitaine and the local coastal management strategy led by the Royan Atlantique Urban Community (CARA), with support from the Municipality of Saint-Palais-sur-Mer.
The beaches of the Royan Atlantique area are constantly shifting under the influence of winds, tides and storms. At La Grande Côte, the shoreline is gradually retreating. This is why CARA decided to install a CoastSnap Nouvelle-Aquitaine observation station on this site in Saint-Palais-sur-Mer. The station is positioned at the top of the rocky cliff overlooking the southern part of La Grande Côte. Located on the esplanade next to the “Le Petit Poucet” restaurant, it provides a vantage point to observe erosion on the southern area of the beach, which remains relatively moderate, as well as the northern area, where retreat reaches several metres each year. The site is now left to evolve naturally.
Observing the Nouvelle-Aquitaine Coastline to Better Understand It
Inspired by an Australian initiative launched in 2017 in Sydney, CoastSnap is based on a simple principle: from a fixed observation point, anyone can take a photo of the coastal landscape. Whether you are a local resident, a visitor on a walk, a coastal professional, a parent with children or a young person out with friends, anyone can contribute to this image collection. It is a citizen science approach.
These photos, compiled in a shared database, help track coastal changes over time while raising public awareness about the fragility of the shoreline.
The CoastSnap program is now deployed in many countries, including the United Kingdom, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, the Netherlands, Brazil, the United States, India and Mozambique, and is gradually expanding along the French coast.
In Nouvelle-Aquitaine, the stations in La Tremblade and Saint-Palais-sur-Mer are the seventh and eighth installations, following those in Lacanau, Saint-Jean-de-Luz, Capbreton, Biscarrosse, Mimizan and La Brée-les-Bains.
How to Take Part in Monitoring the Coastline and Contribute to a Better Understanding of this Environment?
Why not combine pleasure and purpose during your next visit to the coast? When passing near a CoastSnap observation station, citizens are invited to take a photo of the beach and share it via an online form, by email or through an app.
What Happens to Your Photo?
Once submitted, your photo becomes part of a citizen-generated image bank. These images are compared and analysed by scientists using various image-processing algorithms developed by researchers from the international CoastSnap network and the Observatoire de la côte de Nouvelle-Aquitaine. This database can be accessed via the CoastSnap website on pages dedicated to each station.
By collecting repeated photos of the beach from the same fixed point, scientists can track changes in shoreline position, beach levels, vegetation and more. This information contributes to a better understanding of site evolution and supports effective and sustainable beach management.
Capture how the beach evolves, share your photos, and help us better understand the dynamics of Saint-Palais-sur-Mer’s coastline!
To follow how beaches change over time, discover our timelapse videos on social media, created from citizen-contributed photos.
The Municipality of Saint-Palais-sur-Mer Committed to Protecting its Coastline
Facing coastal erosion and associated risks, the Municipality of Saint-Palais-sur-Mer has been engaged since 2020 in a local coastal management strategy to strengthen knowledge about shoreline evolution and anticipate the impacts of natural phenomena. A Sustainable Development Plan for the area, carried out between October 2020 and March 2022 by the GIP Littoral, helped define the guidelines for a project combining mobility, landscape enhancement and coastal protection.
La Grande Côte beach, identified as a priority area, is currently undergoing a major redevelopment programme. Highly frequented by both residents and visitors, it plays a key role in this coastal management strategy.
To protect this fragile area, several actions are being implemented: progressive renaturation of dune and backshore areas, reduction of seafront parking, relocation of some pathways and enhancement of soft-access routes. These measures aim to preserve coastal ecosystems, reduce human pressure on sensitive zones and ensure user safety in the face of the shoreline’s natural evolution.