An environmental charity has completed work on a project hoped to help curb complaints of broken glass at Somerset Long Bay.

The Bermuda National Trust, which co-owns the Somerset Long Bay East Nature Reserve with the Bermuda Audubon Society through the joint Buy Back Bermuda initiative, said historical dumping of waste in the area had caused ongoing issues for beachgoers.

However, through work on the coastline, carried out with the support of the Centennial Bermuda Foundation, is hoped to prevent erosion which led to broken glass on the beach.

The project involved regrading the coastline, installing organic burlap matting to hold the embankment together and heavily planting with coastal species whose roots will in time help to prevent erosion.

Myles Darrell, head of natural heritage at the BNT, said: “The regrading and planting of this embankment should be a long-term solution to the glass problem at the beach.

“It will take some time for the glass already on the beach to smooth down so that it does not pose a risk, but the aim is to prevent more glass from being washed out.

“We keep our fingers crossed that the new planting will have time to settle in and create strong root systems before the next major storm.

“As the plants establish, users of the space are asked to avoid walk through the foreshore dune system and embankment as this may damage the new embankment and plantings.”

Broken glass has long been a source of complaints at the Sandys beach, particularly on the eastern side of the beach.

The BNT said a wetland area to the eastern side of the beach, known as Pitman’s Point, had been an historical dumping site before the start of restoration work in the 1990s.

Buy Back Bermuda purchased the Somerset Long Bay East Nature in 2005 and carried out extensive work to expand and dredge a pond on the site, but coastal erosion had caused broken glass to be exposed and released over time.

A BNT spokeswoman said: “Broken glass from old bottles has periodically been washed out from the embankment by storm surges and spread across the beach by wave action and longshore drift.”

Volunteers have helped to keep the beach clean over the years, collecting glass on a regular basis and organising clean-ups in the area.

The Department of Planning last year approved remediation measures on the coastline to help prevent erosion, stating the proposed solution would enhance the ecological characteristic of the reserve and not cause any adverse effects to plans and animals in the area.