1. Anderton Lift is to treat the public to a spectacle later this year. The Waterways Recovery Group plans to organise a Sponsored Abseil down the lift in October. Entrants are expected to make a big splash in the local press, hopefully not on the way down. Revenues will top up the restoration fund. WRG will give further details later.

2. British Waterways is to extend its contract with The Waterways Trust. Under the contract terms, the Trust provides umbrella management of restoration projects; promotes new projects; manages the waterways museums at Ellesmere Port, Gloucester and Stoke Bruerne.

3. Unification of navigation regulation on the country's waterways lies in prospect under an IWA proposal that B W should take over the navigation authority of the Environment Agency. The Agency currently carries responsibility for boat movement on the Thames, Medway, Nene and Great Ouse river basins. The IWA sees unification of navigation regulation country-wide as being in the best interest of future investment in inland waterways. The Agency would be free to concentrate on its role as environment manager.

4. The IWA has stepped in to enhance navigation facilities on the new Ribble Link, which is to connect the Lancaster Canal to the main waterway network. The scheme's promoters, B W, The Waterways Trust and the Ribble Link Trust do not have sufficient funds to provide full length locks. IWA is to contribute £20,000 of additional funding towards the total estimate of £110,000 so that the maximum boat length on the waterway can be increased from 62 to 72 feet. Narrow boats will then be accommodated. Further contributions are being solicited. So far, the Historic Narrow Boat Owners Club has offered £1,000; the Barge Association £500; and IWA's North Lancs and Cumbria Section £500.

5. B W has made a move towards standardization in lock gate design. It has issued a guidance note to waterway managers. Safety concerns lie behind the move. A main requirement is to have flush inside faces on lock gates so as to reduce the chance of a boat snagging or hanging up as water levels change. The new requirement applies retrospectively where a high risk is identified on existing gates; as well as to new gates. Gate design also needs to take into account possible snagging as boat bows move horizontally across the face of a gate in turbulent water.

6. The Huddersfield Narrow Canal restoration project is completed. New lengths of waterway have been opened at Slaithwaite and Stalybridge. These new sections have been constructed to fill in gaps where the original canal passed through villages. Navigation on the fully restored canal was restored at the beginning of May. Boat trains 250 feet long are being run by BW through Standedge Tunnel on the Canal. Cost of a boat passage is steep, at £35 a time if booked in advance, or £40 for boats turning up on spec. Tourists are flocking to visit the tunnel to enjoy the "Standedge Visitor Experience" which includes a half-hour trip into the Tunnel.

7. This year's National Waterways Festival and Inland Boat Show is at Milton Keynes lasting four days from Friday, 24th. to Monday, 27th. August. The site is at Newland Park alongside the Grand Union Canal. The event has received a welcome boost from BW which is putting up £30,000 worth of sponsorship money for each of the next three Festivals. Planned venue for the 2002 Festival is the Huddersfield Broad Canal; and for 2003, the River Thames at Henley.

8. Effects of construction projects on the environment loom ever larger in the minds of the authorities. IWA recommends environmental assessments and nature conservation studies be undertaken even for small projects; advising that these are a useful lever in ensuring the support of local authorities as well as nearby public. A more thorough "Environmental Impact Assessment" may be required when a project is likely to have significant effects on the environment. Sensitive areas such as Sites of Special Scientific Interest or National Parks are more likely to need special study. For smaller projects, e.g. those covering canal lengths shorter than 2 km., a less detailed "Environmental Statement" may suffice.

9. "Ipsaris" is the new name for "Fibreway", the company which has been running fibre optic cables under many towpaths. Ipsaris is 90% owned by Marconi and 10% by BW.

10. The current foot and mouth crisis has been affecting the waterways. The Government was advising all non-essential visitors to stay away from the countryside until the situation changed and local councils used their powers to close public rights of way temporarily. Where towpaths are a public right of way, BW felt it had no alternative but to close down. On March 3rd. BW decided on a general closure of the network except for urban stretches. Although the likelihood of waterway users spreading the disease is only slight, the risk still exists. Levels of anxiety are currently high in the farming community; restraint on the part of the waterway fraternity is in the best interests of good relationships in the future.

11. Restoration of historic boats has been favoured by the Heritage Lottery Fund. Two grants have been made in the North West. £50,000 has been offered towards the £86,000 total cost of restoring the Shropshire Union fly boat, the "Satum". BW's Chester office, prepared the funding bid with the Shropshire Union Fly Boat Restoration Society. The "Satum" is owned by BW, Chester. Another fly boat, the "Symbol" was broken up recently; however the ironwork was rescued for later use after extensive photographing and video taping. It is hoped to build a replica when funding surfaces. A second grant of £33,600 was made to the Boat Museum Society for restoration of the "Worcester". In the more distant future, perhaps a replica Mersey Flat might sail the Sankey.

12. Grotty sections of the Ashton Canal in East Manchester are to get a face-lift. BW and the North West Development Agency have put together a regeneration scheme to improve the canal's surroundings. Most of the £742,000 cost will be borne by the Development Agency, with BW bearing the cost of tow path improvements. The towpath will be paved and new access points provided. New lighting will remove dark corners and provide safer walking. Demolition of the derelict Star Iron Works is included in the scope of work.

13. The Daresbury Research Lab has had its future secured by a multi-million pound Government investment. This is music to the ears of the Manchester Ship Canal Company which receives £40,000 a year for water taken from the nearby Bridgewater Canal. Boat licences would have been hiked to compensate for the loss in income.

14. A well-known bridge on the Lancaster Canal in Kendal has received the Heritage Lottery Fund's backing for restoration. A £39,420 grant has been put up to restore Change Bridge. Although the canal has been in-filled at this point, the bridge carries Grade 2 listing as a historic structure. Dating from 1819, it has cobbled ramps to allow horses to "change" from one canal side to the other without having to divert around the former canal basin.

15.Chris Coburn's campaign on the Lichfield and Atherton Canal continues. Recalling his epic "Cut to Caernarvon" journey in support of restoration in the face of opposition from developers of the Birmingham Northern Relief Road. The line of the canal needs culverts to feed a new aqueduct over the road. A last ditch appeal has been made by the Canal's Restoration Trust for £200,000 towards the cost of the culverts.

Extracted by George Bruce

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