From the Chair

The main event in the life of the Society this Autumn has been the visit of Dr. George Greener, Chairman of British Waterways, to the Sankey on October 3 rd. (A description of the day can be read later in this issue.)

As a newcomer to the Sankey, and with little fore-knowledge of what he would be seeing, Dr. Greener's impressions of the Canal and its potential were eagerly awaited. He was impressed. He was also impressive. For the Sankey to be restored, the people who own it, that is, the three Local Authorities of Halton, Warrington, and St. Helens, need to see the value of spending time and energy on the project. Dr. Greener provided that motivation.

As with all the other restoration projects in which they have been, or are involved, the main plank of the case for spending large sums of money on waterways has been that of Regeneration. Given BW's recent track record of involvement in schemes thought of as wild dreams even five years ago, he could speak with authority on the cash benefits which are already flowing from the completion of new structures, such as the Falkirk Wheel and the Ribble Link, and of long-awaited restorations, such as the two Pennine waterways and the Anderton Lift. The Council representatives he spoke with on the tour were left in no doubt that canal-based regeneration works.

As a direct result of this visit, the three Boroughs are now working up a Partnership which will commission a study into the economic benefits case for restoring the Sankey, and building the link to the rest of the country's canal system via the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. It is hoped that this will be delivered by Summer 2003. If this study is positive, the next step will be the employment of a project officer who will put together a programme of bids to take the restoration and the new canal's building forward. We hope for exciting days ahead!

David Long, Chair, SCARS

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