A scenic area on Tramore beach in Co Waterford is under threat from natural and human erosion, according to a local authority heritage officer.
The "Baldy Man" sand dune, the tallest of the dunes in Tramore, is being eroded by a combination of "wind and walking" it emerged. The volume of people now living in Tramore, including the number of recreational visitors, was contributing to the problem.
The dune, on the northern edge of the sandhills, has suffered from the latest "blow- out". The formation of sand dunes relies heavily on plants and wind-blown sand, while "embryo dunes" form when salt-resistant plants grow on sand and trap a small mound of sand.
Plants continue to push through the mound of sand and, as the conditions become less salty, Marram grass is enabled to grows at a fast pace in the area. The grass, as seen in the Tramore dunes, can trap sand up to hundreds of feet high.
Heritage officer with Waterford County Council, Dominic Berridge, said the formation of new dunes on the seaward side quickly cut off the supply of blown sand and other plants crowd out the Marram grass.
"Nothing can stop wave erosion, but it [ erosion] can be reduced by transplanting Marram grass, which holds the dune together."
Mr Berridge asked people visiting the sandhills "not to trample on the sand dunes" to prevent further erosion.
Meanwhile, a raw sewage problem on Tramore beach last weekend meant that signs had to be erected advising members of the public not to bathe there.