Between 1990 and 2000, out of the 80,000m3 of sand lost from the Bay of Pouliguen Beach, 69% was from La Baule central Beach. A wall at the top of the beach exacerbates this visible erosion. The thinning of the upper part is conducive to sea assaults on the structure, leading to an increase in erosion rates at the bottom. In 2018-2019, to mitigate this erosion, the City of La Baule-Escoublac installed an Ecoplage® drainage system across a 1km stretch of the beach. The results of the project would benefit both the inhabitants of La Baule and the many tourists during the summer season.

The system consists of several drains positioned underneath the beach, parallel to the coastline, and connected to a pumping station whose action creates a dry zone, thus, facilitating the infiltration of waves and the deposition of suspended sediments. At the same time, part of the wave energy is absorbed while the erosive effect is attenuated. Dryer sand facilitates sediments’ wind transport, which supports beach accretion. In addition to mitigating erosion, this system allows the exploitation of highly filtered seawater to supply the Aquabaule aquatic centre (basins and heat pumps) and thus to save energy.