A BID to build a huge wall around Brightlingsea Marina has been described as an “enormous monstrosity”.

A large amount of silt has built up in the marina, which needs to be cleared.

The team behind the development need to put the mud somewhere, but say disposing it on land or in the sea is not possible.

So they are now looking at plans to use it to build a 5m high wall at the marine entrance – to the horror of residents.

David Bridle, former commodore of Brightlingsea Sailing Club, said: “The wall will ruin the harbour, creating an ugly eyesore that will be a hazard to navigation and ruin the view along the creek forever.

“The mud in the marina is the marina’s problem, not the town’s.”

He has started a Facebook group, which gained more than 600 members in just a week, and a petition.

He said: “I’m not surprised. I know people feel strongly about the creek.

“They don’t want it to be interfered with.

“It will just be an enormous monstrosity.”

The company which used to own the marina has gone into administration and it now owned by the Bank of Israel, managed by EWS, with Aardvark working as consultants.

The proposals are to put the silt into bags, which will be placed on top of each other, and then covered by natural stock rocks and vegetation.

Hundreds of residents attended a consultation on the plans.

Boat owner and resident Roger Tabor said: “I think it’s an outrageous thing to suggest.

“To rob the town of one of its visual amenities just because you want to dump cheaplyabit of waste is just immoral.”

A survey in December found there was 11,180m3 of silt in the marina.

There are concerns the wall is not a long-term solution, as there will be more silt due to its position in the estuary.

Mr Bridle said: “There’s no guarantee that wall will be a long-term solution, but if it goes ahead, it will blight the town for generations.”

Before it can do anything, the marina’s owners will need to get a licence from the Marine Management Organisation and planning permission from Tendring Council, which is due to take 13 weeks.

The town council is yet to receive the official application.

A spokesman for Aardvark said: “The public consultation on June 23 was held to present the key information that would be included within the planning application and marine licence application for the proposed geotextile bag scheme at the Waterside Marina and to receive comments from members of the public.

“We recorded that 94 people attended the event. We receivedavariety of comments on the proposed scheme from a range of different users of the estuary.

“The feedback we received will be very helpful in determining how we progress with the development.”