canalboat.co.uk Canal Boat January 2018 11
NEWS
TOWPATH
TELEGRAPH
PLASTIC BOAT LAUNCHED
As part of the campaign to reduce the
amount of plastic waste in oceans and
waterways, a boat has been launched in
London’s docks which is made entirely
from reclaimed plastic. 12-seater punt
Poly-Mer is made from plaswood, a
material created from 100 percent plastic
waste. The boat will tour the West Indla
Docks and connecting channels, collecting
litter (which will be used to build more
boats) and publicising the campaign.AWARDS FOR RCR
River Canal Rescue has won the People’s
Choice and Service Excellence awards at
this year’s Midlands Family Business
Awards. The inland waterways breakdown
and recovery specialists were also
runner-up and highly commended in the
Best Small Family Business and Employer
of the Year sections respectively.MB&B TOWPATH UPGRADE
A 3.5km length of the Manchester Bolton
& Bury Canal towpath is being upgraded,
thanks to a project led by the Canal & River
Trust but funded by transport for Greater
Manchester. The 16-week programme of
work covers the Bury arm of the canal
between Prestolee and Radcliff. Although
the canal is unnavigable, the path is a
popular with local walkers and cyclists,
and reopening to navigation forms part of
the long-term restororation plans of the
Manchester Bolton & Bury Canal Society.AIRE HYDRO PLANT OPENS
Following the construction of hydroelectric
power stations at Thrybergh on the River
Don and Kirkthorpe on the Calder, a third
hydro plant on the Yorkshire rivers has
been opened, this time a 500kW scheme
at Knottingley on the Aire. Canal & River
Trust Chairman Allan Leighton said that it
was “wonderful to see the historic Aire &
Calder Navigation being used in this way”.
Barn Energy, the company involved in all
three of these schemes, also has
proposals for a larger 1800kW scheme at
Cromwell Lock on the Trent.Our pictures show the arrival of a Heritage Lottery Fund
inspection trip at the recently re-gated Bowbridge Lock,
current limit of navigation on a length of the Cotswold
Canals currently under restoration, and the same site
three years ago in the early stages of lock rebuilding –
just as the bid for the next phase goes in to HLF.
The purpose of this first trip through the restored
length was to enable HLF monitors to evaluate the work
done on the Phase 1a length of the restoration (from
Stonehouse via Stroud to below Brimscombe Port) and
‘sign off’ the major HLF funding which provided the
largest contribution to this £20m six-mile project. The
workboat cruised the entire currently navigable section
from Stonehouse; the final section above Bowbridge is
awaiting the completion of dredging work.
The date of the visit was timely, as the re-submitted
bid for £10m of funding for the Phase 1b length was due
to go in on 29 November. If successful (and the outcome
is likely to be known this spring), this would see the
crucial four-mile ‘missing link’ between Stonehouse and
Saul reopened within five years, reopening the
connection to the national canal system.The Cheshire Ring looks set to remain closed to
through navigation until March, as a result of a lock
chamber wall problem which shut Marple Locks in
September.
Following subsidence of the lockside by Lock 15 of
the 16 lock flight on the Peak Forest Canal, initial
examination revealed that the lock chamber wall had
moved, and the flight was closed. The Canal & River
Trust told Canal Boat that further ground investigations
(including digging large boreholes around the lock to
provide detailed information of ground makeup) were
continuing as we went to press, with a view to
establishing the extent of “complex emergency
repairs” needed. These will involve taking down the
old lock wall, installing a concrete retaining wall
behind it, and then reinstating the lock wall. To
make matters more difficult:- The lock is in a conservation area
- The work will involve an archaeological dig
- The work is taking place in a confined site
The Trust hopes to start work before Christmas,
and told Canal Boat that “we want the repairs
completed by mid-March”, with the opportunity
taken to carry out other work on the flight while it
is closed.
Here’s one we made earlier...
Graffiti attacks on historic
waterway structures represent 50
percent of all vandalism incidents,
which in turn constitutes 47
percent of the 860 cases of
damage to heritage assets over the
past year (a 10 percent rise) Just
removing the most offensive
graffiti is costing £38,000 per year- shifting the whole lot might add
up to £1m.
These are some of the more
depressing findings of the Canal &
River Trust’s annual Heritage
Report, which also reported 99
incidents of bridges damaged by
road vehicle strikes, and more than
double that number of cases of
boat impacts damaging
structures. National Heritage
Manager Nigel Crowe called it
“depressing that we have to
spend so much time clearing up
after vandals who spray their
marks over our heritage. Areas
that are covered in anti-social
graffiti can feel intimidating as
well as being an eyesore so we
take action where we can, and
always when it’s racist or
obscene.”
On a brighter note, the number
of canal structures on the national
‘heritage at risk’ list fell from 25 to22 following conservation work,
and the proportion of historic
structures in at least ‘fair’
condition remained steady at 85
percent. The Trust’s heritage
team’s activities included- Continuing the Oxford Canal
liftbridge restoration programme - Refurbishing and letting
canalside houses - Archaeological investigations
including historic pumping
systems on the Wendover and
Regents - Partnering Birmingham City
University on two-day canal
conservation course module
Counting the cost of graffiti
PEAK FOREST CANAL
COTSWOLD CANALS
March reopening for Marple?