Waterways for Today

Highlighting the benefits Waterways for Today

Alison Smedley provides details of two of the 12 benefi ts highlighted in the Inland Waterways Association’s new report

Waterways for Today, IWA’s new report, has now been published and is being widely distributed among politicians at all levels to demonstrate the importance of the UK’s inland waterways. The report provides evidence that demonstrates why waterways should be receiving full support and funding om government.

This is the fi rst of a series of articles for Waterways that will each spotlight two of the 12 benefi ts covered in the report. In this issue, we look at two very topical subjects – mitigating climate change and the country’s economic recovery – and how waterways can help both of these national problems.

Benefit 1

Contributing to the country's economic recovery

From the ‘Economic Benefi ts’ section of the report, the fi rst benefi t we are going to look at in detail is how the waterways can contribute to the country’s economic recovery. As the report explains, transformational waterway projects will help national and devolved governments deliver their post-Brexit and Covid-19 recovery programmes. Incorporating waterway improvement projects into wider regeneration bids will also help local authorities improve rural and urban areas and the lives of millions of people.

With canals having their origins in the Industrial Revolution, it is no surprise that some 75% of local authori districts with the highest proportion of deprived neighbourhoods are located on the inland waterways network. Of the 124 local authorities designated as Category 1 for the 2022

Waterways for Today overview of the 12 benefits

In the next issue we will look in more depth will look in more depth at two more of the benefi ts outlined in the report, but here, below, is an overview of all 12 benefi ts.

The full report, available to download om The full report, available to download om IWA’s website, can be used as a tool for your local campaigns, with materials downloadable om the website including pdfs relating to each of the 12 benefi ts.

Economic

1. Contribute to economic recovery 2. Encourage increased spend in local communities 3. Facilitate savings to the NHS and social care budgets

Natural & Built Environment

4. Enhance and improve the natural environment 5. Protect heritage for future generations 6. Improve sustainabili and help to combat climate change

Local Communities

7. Connect communities 8. Provide opportunities for education and young people 9. Create jobs, training and apprenticeships

Improving People's Lives

10. Encourage improved physical health 11. Improve mental health and wellbeing 12. Create be er places to live

GRAHAM AND MARILYN SPEECHLEY The report highlights Broad Street Bridge in Birmingham as a before-andafter example of what canalside regeneration can do.

STEPHEN DESMOND

Levelling Up Fund (the highest level of identified need), 87 (70%) are on the inland waterways. These facts demonstrate the huge potential for waterways to contribute to many aspects of the country’s economic recovery.

Waterway restoration and regeneration projects can deliver on many of the UK Government’s aspirations in their ‘Levelling Up’ proposals: to create employment opportunities and high-quality skills training, improve transport connectivity in the form of active travel corridors, narrow the gap in healthy life expectancy, improve wellbeing and create more pride in the places where people live.

A report commissioned by the National Trust shows unequal access to nature in many urban neighbourhoods, towns and cities. Improved access to regenerated waterways can be part of the solution to this.

Sir David and Lady Sheila Suchet, well-known waterway supporters (and IWA Vice Presidents) provided a quote to underpin this benefit:

Sir David and Lady Sheila Suchet have been boating together since 1974.

Su C het ID D A v

“During our many years enjoying Britain’s waterways, we have seen first-hand how waterway regeneration can act as a catalyst for the wider transformation of a whole community. Once run-down and neglected, there are places on the canals today that have a vibrancy to rival many of the country’s top tourist destinations yet are freely accessible to everyone.”

Facts & Stats

Among the statistics included in the report is that the leisure marine industry supports 133,000 FTE (full-time equivalent) jobs across the inland waterways. This is from a recent report from British Marine and Canal & River Trust: The Economic, Social & Wellbeing Value of Boating (2022).

The report also includes some facts demonstrating the impact of canalside regeneration on the local economy: n The Falkirk Wheel, the innovative engineering solution connecting the

Forth & Clyde and Union canals, and one of Scotland’s most visited tourist attractions, created over 60 direct and indirect jobs, with the economic impact valued at over £3m a year (MVA Consulting 2013). n Every £1 spent on a project to create a navigable route under the M4 for the Wilts & Berks Canal will produce £1.79 in economic benefit to the local communities in Swindon and Royal Wootton Bassett (Wilts & Berks

Canal Trust 2022). n Sustainable development on the Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal in

Caerphilly and Torfaen local authority areas is forecasted to create 2,129 net additional jobs from canalside development, £93m net additional GVA, 3,590 new houses and 213,000 square metres of nonresidential development (Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal Regeneration

Partnership 2015).

Case Study: Montgomery Canal

The awarding, in October 2021, of £13.9m from the Levelling Up Fund, as part of a wider £15.4m bid by Powys County Council, will see the restoration of 4 miles of the Montgomery Canal within Wales.

The funding will help remove some of the obstructions between Llanymynech and Maerdy and restore the length to full navigation, making a significant contribution to the final aim of connecting the Montgomery Canal to the national canal network.

Craig Williams, MP for Montgomeryshire, said, “The restoration of the canal will bring real investment, real growth and real jobs to Montgomeryshire’s communities.”

This is estimated to be worth £62m over 10 years, including £23m from additional visitor spend. Work will include the creation of three waterbased nature reserves, the rebuilding of two road bridges, dredging and bank protection and the development of a community cultural hub utilising historic canalside buildings.

The bid, supported by the Canal & River Trust along with the Montgomery Canal Partnership and Montgomery Waterway Restoration Trust (who have been working and campaigning on the project for decades), should also provide 40 new jobs in the visitor and tourism sector, along with 85 jobs during the restoration works.

Benefit 6: Sustainability

Planning for resilience and climate change

Turning now to the subject of climate change and sustainability, which features in the ‘Natural and Built Environment’ section of the report. Our inland waterways face unprecedented challenges from damage caused by weather extremes, but waterways can also be part of the solution by mitigating as well as adapting to the impacts of climate change.

The report outlines many ways in which waterways have the potential to address many impacts of climate change, such as mitigating flooding and droughts, transferring drinking water supplies and generating hydropower. They can also provide active travel and low-carbon transport routes, and more freight on commercial waterways will reduce lorry movements on the roads.

Waterways will also need to adapt to meet zero-emissions targets – sustainable fuels, electric charging points and other associated infrastructure is required. Innovative solutions, such as using canal water to reduce urban temperatures as well as heating and cooling buildings, are being implemented.

Moving goods by water is intrinsically more energy efficient than road or rail but more incentives are required in the form of grants, capital funding or subsidies to achieve the economic, social and environmental benefits. The existing Modal Shift Revenue Support grant should give more weight to the environmental benefits of waterborne transport, and this is something that IWA is campaigning on, along with greater protection through the planning system for existing wharves.

The report argues that the increasing need to transfer water to areas of drought can be better handled through open waterways rather than more costly pipeline schemes. Other benefits of open channels for water transfer include preserving heritage, positive impacts on the water environment, biodiversity and ecology, social and amenity value through recreational use, and the potential for reduced carbon impact through re-purposing existing infrastructure, low-carbon heating and cooling opportunities.

The Department for Transport’s Clean Maritime Plan outlines specific measures to tackle air pollutant emissions from the UK’s maritime and inland waterways sectors, with a long-term transition to low and, eventually, zero emissions. Investment in infrastructure and the availability of affordable biofuels is needed for this to happen and this is another area where IWA is campaigning. Sir Tim Smit, the founder of the Eden Project in Cornwall, provided a quote for this part of the report. He is also a founder and supporter of Down to Earth Derby, which is supporting waterway regeneration in the city.

Auchinstarry on the Forth & Clyde Canal, restored with millennium funding.

“Rivers and canals are the perfect metaphor for imagining connection and responsibility – sustainability thinking. Derby is blessed that rivers and canals are part of its heartbeat; the city and the countryside will be reimagined through the lens of nature as a new generation reimagines its future with everything to play for.”

Facts & Stats

The report includes a wide range of statistics from across the sustainability sector, including: n One 500-tonne capacity barge can replace 25 lorries each carrying 20 tonnes. A barge uses 1.3 litres of diesel per tonne-km compared to 1.7 for a train and 4.1 for a lorry. CO2 emissions by transport mode are equally impressive, with a ratio of 1:1.4:4.9 for barge, train and lorry respectively (Tyndall Centre for Climate

Change Research). n 41.8m tonnes of freight were moved on UK inland waterways in 2020, representing 1.3 billion tonne kilometres (Department for

Transport 2021). n A recent study looking at modal shift of light freight from road to river in London identified capacity for up to 20 million parcels to be carried on the river each year, creating 833 jobs, increasing GVA by £53.7m and providing £7m of environmental benefits (Thames

Estuary Growth Board and Port of London

Authority, 2022). n Heat-transfer technology can enable canal water to heat homes in winter and cool cities in summer, without any adverse impact on biodiversity. Up to 350,000 homes could benefit on Canal & River Trust waterways alone, saving more than 1 million tonnes of CO2 each year. n There are already several hydropower schemes on the inland waterways network contributing to renewable energy targets, with the potential for many more. On CRT waterways alone, 20 million kWh is generated, equating to power for around 6,200 homes and saving 9,500 tonnes of CO2. n Research by the University of Manchester for the trust shows that the presence of canal water in urban areas can cool Britain’s overheating cities by up to 1.60C during a heatwave, along a 100m-wide corridor.

The Glasgow Arm of the Forth & Clyde Canal, March 2019.

Case Study: Glasgow's 'Smart Canal' Repurposing canals as ready-made solutions

An award-winning drainage system in Glasgow combines modern technology with an 18th-century canal to unlock regeneration across Scotland’s central belt.

The North Glasgow Integrated Water Management System uses pioneering sustainable drainage principles to provide flood-risk reduction, water-quality management and habitat improvement for local communities. Believed to be the first ‘smart canal’ in Europe, it unlocks 110 hectares of land for investment, regeneration and development. It also paves the way for more than 3,000 new homes to be built, while avoiding over 30,000 tonnes of operational CO2.

With north Glasgow’s sewer systems reaching capacity, new solutions for surface water management were needed. Engineering firm AECOM developed the £17m ‘smart canal’ concept on behalf of Scottish Canals, Glasgow City Council and Scottish Water within the Metropolitan Glasgow Strategic Drainage Partnership to tackle this challenge. Funding for the scheme was provided by the Glasgow City Region City Deal and two ERDF programmes (Green Infrastructure Fund & Scotland’s 8th City – the Smart City).

Meteorological forecasting data and sensors give advanced warning of heavy rainfall and automatically trigger a lowering of the water in the Forth & Clyde Canal. By enabling real-time operational management, the canal will become an intelligent water-management system, proactively providing surface water storage when required.

Ways to Get Involved in the Waterways for Today Campaign

Waterways Champions

To celebrate the launch of the Waterways for Today report, we are inviting members and waterways supporters to get involved with the campaign. We have, therefore, launched the search for ‘Waterways Champions’, which is a new initiative that will result in the selection of one champion from each branch of IWA. These volunteers will help promote the benefits of the waterways in their local communities and raise awareness about the challenges facing the network. Regional branches will be actively involved in the selection of their Waterways Champion so please get in touch with your local branch if you would like to be considered for the role.

Time Capsule

While the Waterways for Today report focuses on waterways in the present day, we very much hope that it will also become a benchmark for the waterways of the future. The Time Capsule project will help achieve this by creating a snapshot of today’s waterways that can be revisited in many years to come. The time capsule will include a copy of the Waterways for Today report, case studies, and photographs of our canals and rivers. Look out for more details of the time-capsule project in the next bulletin newsletter and on our social media accounts.