Wilts & Berks Canal Trust Environmental Statement Link canal 3: Need and Alternatives

3.0 PROJECT BACKGROUND AND ALTERNATIVES

3.1 Introduction

3.1.1 The EIA Regulations require an ES to include ‘an outline of the main alternatives studied by the applicant … and an indication of the main reasons for the choice made, taking into account the environmental effects’.

3.1.2 To provide the context for the alternative developments that have been considered, the background to the project, and the benefits considered by the applicants, is set out in section 3.2 below.

3.1.3 Section 3.3 then describes the main alternative routes to the planning application proposals that have been studied and considered by the Wilts & Berks Canal Trust.

3.1.4 As the planning application proposals were defined, as set out in 2012, and the amendments evolved in conjunction with this ES, a number of alternative design measures were examined, and these are set out in Section 3.4 below.

3.2 Project background and need for the development

3.2.1 The Wilts & Berks Canal was promoted from 1793 as a means of providing cost effective transport. The Bill empowering construction of the canal received Royal Assent in 1795 and the canal was cut from the Kennet & Avon Canal at , near Melksham, to the River Thames at Abingdon during the years 1796 to 1810.

3.2.2 A link from to the Thames & Severn Canal at Latton (near Cricklade) was completed in 1819. This link, known as the North Wilts Canal, allowed traffic to bypass the difficult River Thames navigation between Lechlade and Abingdon.

3.2.3 The Wilts & Berks was cut to take narrowboats 72 feet long and seven feet wide, carrying 35 tons. There were three short tunnels, and 42 locks on the main line, 11 on the North Wilts Canal and three on the Calne branch.

3.2.4 The Wilts & Berks enjoyed a period of prosperity between 1817 and 1841 as part of the chain of canals providing a transportation route for goods between the West Country and the Midlands, including for coal from the Radstock and Paulton mines in the Somerset coalfields. However, with the coming of the Great Western Railway in 1841 decline set in. When the Stanley Aqueduct between and Calne collapsed in 1901, this stopped through traffic, and the canal was abandoned by Act of Parliament in 1914.

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3.2.5 Much of the canal subsequently became unnavigable, with many of the structures falling into disrepair and some even being deliberately damaged by army demolition exercises. Parts of the route were filled in, some areas have reverted to farmland, and some areas have been built over, including by the Melksham Police Station at Hampton Park.

3.2.6 The Wilts & Berks Canal Amenity Group was originally formed in 1977 to trace and record what remained of this once important waterway, and protect what remained of the route. Some 10 years later the Group started to restore stretches of the canal for their amenity and ecological value.

3.2.7 In 1995, the Group decided to fund a professional study and Scott Wilson Kirkpatrick & Co Ltd (SWK) were commissioned to undertake a Feasibility Study into the complete restoration of the 67 mile length.

3.2.8 The Amenity Group reformed itself as The Wilts & Berks Canal Trust in 2001, declaring an objective of full restoration of the waterway. The aims of the Trust were to protect, conserve and improve the canal and its branches, with the ultimate aim of restoring the whole canal to navigable status.

3.2.9 Also in 2001 the Wilts & Berks Canal Partnership was established bringing together local authorities and other outside agencies in support of the aims and aspirations of the Canal Trust. The Canal Partnership was then renamed as the , Swindon and Oxfordshire Canal Partnership in 2012, to reflect the three administrative local authority areas where the canal is being restored. The Canal Partnership includes , Wilts & Berks Canal Trust, Melksham Town Council, Melksham Without Parish Council and many other organisations as partners.

3.2.10 To date, several miles of the historic line of the Wilts & Berks waterway have been returned to water with many structures, including bridges, locks and lengths of towpath, restored or in the process of restoration. Where the historic line has been lost in Swindon and Abingdon, new links have been constructed (see 3.2.12 & 3.2.13 below). All of this work has been achieved through the drive, determination and dedication of volunteers and the work of both the Wilts & Berks Canal Trust and the Canal Partnership.

3.2.11 The SWK Feasibility Study was completed in 1997 and concluded that restoration of the canal was feasible. However, it was acknowledged that for the major towns of Cricklade, Abingdon, Swindon and Melksham, alternative routes would need to be examined where the historic line had been blocked by subsequent development.

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3.2.12 Detailed design work on a new route to the south of the Abingdon blockage led to the construction of a new junction with the River Thames and a short length of new alignment to the west of this junction. Further action was put on hold while Thames Water deliberated on the construction of a new reservoir.

3.2.13 Detailed design work on a new route to the south of the Swindon blockage led to the construction of a new alignment at Wichelstowe comprising entirely new channel, bridges, locks, aqueducts and other structures built as part of a successful new District housing and commercial development. An extension of this to the east is now being discussed with interested parties.

3.2.14 At Melksham, the Trust decided to proceed with the design and construction of a new route to bypass the blockage. The ‘Melksham Link’ would include a new connection with the Kennet & Avon Canal and its delivery would be a major step towards the complete restoration of the Wilts & Berks Canal.

3.2.15 In 2009, the Wilts & Berks Canal Partnership published a strategy (‘Restoration Strategy for the ‘Completion and Development of the Wilts & Berks Canal’) for the restoration of the whole Wilts & Berks Canal. The Melksham Link is one of 18 separate projects considered in the strategy, and the Melksham Link was identified as the ‘priority’ scheme for delivery. The strategy was revised in 2011 and is being reviewed and updated further.

3.2.16 As a result, the Trust then decided to proceed with the design of a new route for Melksham.

3.2.17 The delivery of the Melksham Link project and its connection with the Kennet & Avon Canal would be a major step towards the complete restoration of the whole Wilts & Berks Canal. The Trust and Partnership are both aiming to complete restoration of the Wilts & Berks Canal by 2025. As a stand-alone project the Melksham Link will effectively become an extension of the Kennet & Avon Canal corridor. In the longer term, when full restoration of the Wilts & Berks Canal is progressed and completed, a new 60 mile long recreational and wildlife corridor will be created.

3.2.18 After successful lobbying over several years, the line of the Wilts & Berks Canal has become protected in the local planning policies of the county and unitary (and former district) councils along its route. The Melksham Link canal route is now protected and allocated for the canal development in Core Policy 16 of the Wiltshire Core Strategy (adopted January 2015). Planning policy is further described in ES chapter 6.

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3.2.19 The applicants have also commissioned studies that have looked into the economic benefits that the Melksham Link canal scheme may bring to the area, to help build a case for scheme funding and to identify the economic and social opportunities that would follow from the scheme’s successful implementation. These are outlined in ES Chapter 12.

3.3 Alternative route options

3.3.1 The process of route selection in Melksham started back in 1997 with a proposal to bypass the town using a greenfield route to the east. A number of feasibility reports were then commissioned which have proposed a line in the general vicinity of the current proposal.

3.3.2 In their report dated January 1998, Scott Wilson Kirkpatrick & Co Ltd (SWK) identified 8 possible routes around Melksham, which are illustrated in Appendix 3.1. Initially, the River Avon route (Route B) option was preferred, with the ‘Eastern Route’ (Route G) retained as a fall-back (while noting the Environment Agency’s concerns). Route G came close to adoption via the District Local Plan, but was abandoned after Melksham Town Council and other partners asked for a solution that was more inclusive to the town.

3.3.3 SWK were then asked to look in more detail at their ‘Route B’ and their subsequent report (Restoration of the Wilts & Berks Canal Strategy Study, 1999) gave more detail and estimated cost for a modified ‘Route B’. This included constructing 7 narrow locks, making the River Avon navigable through Melksham and re-joining the historic line north of the town.

3.3.4 After much discussion, particularly with regard to the possible flood risk, Halcrow were commissioned to review the options and their July 2002 Engineering Study Report entitled The Wilts & Berks Canal Alignment at Melksham, proposed a further alternative whereby a concrete channel would take the navigation along the left (south) bank of the river Avon through Melksham town centre. A plan for this option is shown in Appendix 3.2. Once more the option was the subjected of much scrutiny and discussion before being rejected mainly because of the large requirement for land on the southern river bank between Challymead bridge and the Adventure Centre.

3.3.5 In 2007, Black & Veatch were asked to consider alternatives and their report (Wilts & Berks Canal: Melksham River Route Study, 2007) again proposed using the river as a navigation. The existing Melksham Gate and weir would be demolished and a 2m high new weir built downstream of the A350 Challymead bridge. The route from the K&A canal to the river skirted west around . The effect on the river would be to raise the retention level

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downstream of Challymead bridge by approximately 1.75m and reduce the level upstream of Melksham Weir by 1m. A plan of this route is shown in Appendix 3.3.

3.3.6 A small team of appropriately qualified officers of the Trust then came together to review all of the suggested routes that had come from the various reports commissioned by the Trust over the previous years. The team concluded that a route through Berryfield village, never previously considered, offered many advantages over all other routes despite the additional construction costs. After further consultations, site visits and discussions, Mike Lee, a Chartered Civil Engineer with much waterway experience and member of the review team, offered to undertake an outline engineering study of this proposed route. He concluded that firstly, it would be feasible to include Berryfield village in the scheme, rather than bypassing it, and secondly, to minimise river level changes, Melksham Gate Weir should be retained and a new downstream weir should be built as low as possible consistent with maintaining navigation depth in low flow conditions. This new route had the unanimous backing of the Trust and the Canal Partnership. It was also won the approval of the District, Town and Parish councils, the local Chambers of Commerce and, through exhibitions and public meetings, the vast majority of local people. This support was ultimately demonstrated by the inclusion of the route in Core Policy 16 of Wiltshire Council’s Core Strategy adopted in January 2015.

3.3.7 Accordingly, in 2010, an outline design was drawn up, flood risk and environmental assessments were carried out and a full planning application was submitted in September 2012.

3.4 Alternative designs considered

3.4.1 Once the broad route had been chosen, a number of decisions on alternative design elements had to be made by the Wilts & Berks Canal Trust.

Canal and Lock Width

3.4.2 The Wilts & Berks Canal was built as a ‘narrow’ canal with locks 7 feet wide, which could only accommodate one traditional narrow boat. Restoration would require all the locks to be rebuilt to these dimensions. However, the Kennet & Avon Canal was built as a ‘wide’ canal where locks could accommodate 2 narrow boats side by side. It was decided that the new locks on the Melksham Link would be built to K&A standards. This would allow all wide boats navigating the K&A to reach Melksham thereby increasing traffic to the town and

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benefitting its economy. In particular, it would allow hotel boats and the specialist trip boats operating on the K&A Canal to offer another destination.

Position of Berryfield Lock

3.4.3 The 2010 outline design proposed that Berryfield Lock should be located in the centre of Berryfield village. The proposal included that an aqueduct carrying the canal over Berryfield Brook would be constructed as an integral part of the lock structure. 3D visualisation revealed that in this position, the lock would be obtrusive when viewed from the nearby houses, so repositioning it south of the Brook was investigated. With the lock in this position the level of the canal as it crossed the brook would be lowered. A Flood Risk Assessment was carried out by consultants which showed that a culvert built as part of the concrete channel carrying the canal over the brook could be accommodated without increasing flood risk, so the new position for the lock was adopted.

Hydro Electric Scheme

3.4.4 The current design includes a hydro-electric generator adjacent to the existing Melksham Gate weir. There has to be a new lock adjacent to this weir to enable boats to proceed upstream, and the plan is to locate this lock in the space on the existing river bank in order not to restrict river flow thereby increasing flood risk. Separating the river from the lock will mean building an ‘island’ structure and this can easily be designed to accommodate a hydro- electric generator. Although not essential for the canal, it was considered too good an opportunity to miss. A hydro-electric generator will provide a renewable supply of electricity, which can be fed into the grid or used locally and will bring in an income.

Marina

3.4.5 The original design and submitted planning application included a “possible new marina” in the area enclosed by the Kennet & Avon Canal, the proposed Wilts & Berks Canal, Semington Road and Outmarsh Farmhouse. A number of factors - engineering, financial and planning - led to the decision to remove this from the current plan although it is still an aspiration for the future.

Route back to the Historic Line

3.4.6 Although not within the boundary of this planning application, both the 2002 Halcrow and

the 2007 Black & Veatch design proposed that upstream of the existing Melksham Gate Weir, a route back to the historic line north of the Town would commence where the

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“Melksham Loop” (a minor seasonal watercourse) re-enters the main river by the Adventure Centre. This “route back” was also the preferred option in the original design of the current application, but local consultation suggested that the Melksham Loop is an ecologically sensitive feature, so further investigations were made. The river above Melksham weir is already navigable for about a mile and a 3 lock connection to the original line close to that suggested by SWK is a very good option. This means that the “route back” can be accommodated further up the river, avoiding the Melksham Loop altogether.

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