Marine-friendly sea walls for Cornwall proposed

Students at Cornwall's university want to produce rough and patterned concrete walls for mussels and barnacles

A three-year project is under way in Cornwall to design sea walls which can be colonised by marine life such as mussels and barnacles.

Staff and students at Cornwall's university want to produce rough and patterned concrete walls as habitats.

Traditionally, many harbour walls and breakwaters are constructed with smooth surfaces.

University College Falmouth said it was looking for a harbour where experiments could be conducted.

Daniel Metcalfe, a PhD student involved in the project, said: "The idea is that the concrete pattern has meaning for marine life, so it is protected from predators and the waves."

The research also involves the universities of Exeter and Plymouth and a Cornish concrete company.