The Environment Agency has formally objected to plans for a new Putney pier, demanding more information about how construction work could affect the area’s flood defences.
In a letter [pdf] to the Marine Management Organisation dated 4 December 2025, the agency said it “objects to the development” until Thames Clippers provides detailed plans for construction work near a historic slipway on Putney Embankment.
The agency is concerned that installing a support pile adjacent to the old draw dock river wall could destabilise structures behind it that form part of the Thames Tidal Defence. “If damaged or destabilised it could impact structures behind it, which do form the flood defence, and therefore increase flood risk,” the letter states.
Thames Clippers must now submit a works design for a temporary piling platform before the objection can be lifted. The agency has also requested monitoring of the wall during construction.
The objection is one of several regulatory hurdles facing the £5.5 million project, which is currently the subject of a public consultation running until 29 January. If approved, construction would take between three and nine months.
Government scientists have also raised concerns about the application. The Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS) found [docx] that sediment contamination data submitted by Thames Clippers dates from 2010, fifteen years ago. Under OSPAR guidelines, such data should be no more than three to five years old.
CEFAS has recommended that no dredging takes place until new sediment samples are analysed and the environmental assessment is updated. The MMO may attach this as a condition to any licence granted.
Navigation authorities raise no objections
Despite the Environment Agency’s concerns, other statutory consultees have responded more favourably. The Maritime and Coastguard Agency confirmed it has “no objections to a licence being granted,” while Trinity House, Natural England and Historic England also raised no concerns.
The Port of London Authority, which must grant a separate river works licence, has not yet responded to the consultation.
The proposed Putney pier has proved controversial since Thames Clippers first applied for planning permission in 2022. Wandsworth Council approved the scheme in March 2023 despite 74 objections, including from Olympic rower Guy Pooley and British Rowing chief executive Alastair Marks, who argued the new pier could interfere with the Boat Race.
Council officers concluded that rowers would be able to pass underneath the structure and that the area’s “special recreational and sporting character” would be protected.
Existing pier to be refurbished
The new pier is intended to ensure continued river access at Putney while the existing pier, operated by Livett’s Launches, undergoes refurbishment. Thames Clippers states in its application that “without the new pier in place, river access to and from Putney will be lost, disrupting services for Londoners who rely on this mode of transport.”
The company says the current Putney Pier has steep gradients that fail modern accessibility requirements and becomes restricted during high tides when the river path floods. Thames Clippers describes the new structure as the first UK pier specifically designed for light freight operations alongside passenger services.
Residents can comment on the marine licence application (reference MLA/2025/00385) via the Marine Management Organisation’s public register or by emailing marine.consents@marinemanagement.org.uk before 29 January.
Putney.news reported on the consultation opening last month.
