Porty People and Places

The shifting sands of Portobello Beach ... blipped on my morning run on a very mild morning. 

This gabion is being swallowed fast. It was put in in August 2012.   The explanation below, from GeoResources,  fits perfectly with  our country's current austerity measures. 

(The gabion is a metal cage filled with rocks, about 1 metre by 1 metre square. They are stacked to form a simple wall. They are used to protect a cliff or area in the short term only, since they are easily damaged by powerful storm waves and the cages tend to rust quite quickly. Gabions have the advantage of ease of use and are relatively cheap but their life span is short.)