The Lowland Canals Customer Forum Saturday 16 March 2013 The Falkirk Wheel, Falkirk Chair: Professor John Hume OBE, Chair of the Lowland User Group Scottish Canals: Martin Latimer, Board Member, Scottish Canals Richard Millar, Head of Enterprise, Scottish Canals Alasdair Smart, Manager, Lowland Canals, Scottish Canals Katie Hughes, Director of Estates Josie Saunders, Head of Communications Steve Dunlop, Chief Executive Attendees: Please see Appendix Forum Welcome Professor John Hume OBE, Chair of the Lowland User Group, welcomed everyone to the Forum. Professor Hume invited Alasdair Smart to give an Operational Review of Scottish Canals. Operational Review Alasdair Smart Winter Works ~ Lock 19 to replace the anchor stone and resolve some issues with the gate Towpath Upgrades Lock 14 Possil Marsh ~ Ditchwork and issues with drainage on the towpath Winter Cut ~ Land Engineering work has been the best I have seen in quite a number of years Volunteers ~ Volunteers have been helping Scottish Canals throughout the year with litter picking, painting and various tasks. For Volunteering opportunities please contact Linton McBurnie. Details of Asset Condition Grade 2003 - 2012 A Period of Serious Decline from 1950s to 1990s Millennium Link – Massive Improvement Diverted £7.3M to Helix – No Major Deterioration Beyond 2013 – Re-focus & Invest 1 The Lowland Canals Customer Forum Saturday 16 March 2013 The Falkirk Wheel, Falkirk Operational Review Lock 19 repair works Lock maintenance Towpath upgrades; Falkirk, Kirkintilloch – Cadder, Lambhill, Broxburn, Locks 19 - 20 Towpath drainage Vegetation Litter/ debris collection Pontoon maintenance Planning & preparation – incl customer feedback Prioritisation/ issue resolution Plant & equipment review Efficiency & effectiveness Vegetation Management ~ Canal Banks and Towpaths Weed is an ongoing issue. Scottish Canals will be bringing in extra resources this year, there is £250K of commitment to this project, and would like feedback on problematic areas. User Operation There have been training courses at Leamington Lift Bridge and Applecross Street Bridge. There will be future training at Lock 17-20 if anybody is interested please contact Lisa MacKinnon. Lowland Customer Forum Feedback 27 Oct’12 • Additional mooring rings – Cadder, Linlithgow, Wester Hailes • Pontoons – Grangemouth • Timber Jetties – Causeway End 2 The Lowland Canals Customer Forum Saturday 16 March 2013 The Falkirk Wheel, Falkirk Dredging Programme To improve the performance of our canals we are looking to invest circa £2m on dredging over 2012/13 through 2015/16. The programme to achieve this is 2012/13 Tender Framework contract Feb 2013 2013/14 Caledonian Canal line dredging April 2013 Crinan Canal spot dredging April 2013 Union Canal spot dredging Feb-March 2014 Forth and Clyde Canal line dredging Feb-March 2014 2014/15 Caledonian Canal line dredging Jan-March 2015 Union Canal spot dredging Feb-March 2015 Forth and Clyde Canal line dredging Feb-March 2015 Costs – Line Dredging The costs for dredging are dependent on the following – i) Contaminants within the material ii) Location of unloading point iii) Method of dredging iv) Choice of disposal method For the purpose of budget costing's the following assumptions were made – 1) All arising's are non-hazardous 2) A disposal rate of £10 per Tonne – this is based on previous dredging projects 3) Unloading areas are available within 1km of the dredge location 4) Works are undertaken in a single mobilisation – multiple visits will increase costs 5) Only failing lengths are included in the calculation 6) Does not include spot dredging Forth and Clyde Canal Total volume to be removed – 4,500 cubic metres Estimated cost = £300k 3 The Lowland Canals Customer Forum Saturday 16 March 2013 The Falkirk Wheel, Falkirk Spot Dredging Spot dredging is much less efficient in comparison to dredging along an entire canal length. Users and SC operatives highlight areas of concern which are assessed and the works programmed dependant on the severity and the accessibility of the location. At present the following locations have been highlighted and works will be undertaken in early 2014 Forth and Clyde Canal – Devil’s Elbow, Maryhill lock 25 Union Canal – Linlithgow Future Improvements Scottish Canals have entered into a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) with Strathclyde University which is intended to facilitate the transfer of knowledge between the academic institution, Scottish Canals and Small-Medium enterprises “To embed an environmentally sustainable approach to sediment management, reducing operational costs, generating opportunities for revenue growth and addressing emerging waste legislation requirements” • Review of existing data including best practice techniques • Options for disposal/ re-use of arising's • Alternative dredging methodology • Possible income streams • Consultation with European partners • Liaison with industry /regulatory bodies The Challenges • Dredged sediments considered as “waste” • EU Landfill Directive, Regulations and Landfill Tax makes landfilling “waste” costly • Scotland’s Zero Waste Plan: 70% recycling, 5% landfill by 2025 The Approach • Dredging reduction, reuse, recycling • Preventing siltation • targeting dredging • Reuse of materials • Processing of materials for recyclates Options to be looked at Soil Washing • Produces useable gravel and sand • Wood and plastics removed • Clay fraction and any contaminants separated for containment 4 The Lowland Canals Customer Forum Saturday 16 March 2013 The Falkirk Wheel, Falkirk Composting of Soils and Green Waste Anaerobic Digestion • Produces methane (biogas) from waste • Use for weed and vegetation? • Energy crops grown on sediments Operational Priorities 2013/ 14 - our shared objectives • Weed cutting & harvesting – Reed spraying & additional weed cutting resource • Vegetation management of banks & towpaths – Extra cut, weed spraying & wider cut • Moorings (improvement & development) • Dredging – Increased dredging from this year onwards Alasdair finished by thanking all his staff and the Volunteers for all their hard work. John Hume thanked Alasdair for his update and was very encouraged with the way Alasdair and his team are getting to grips with the real issues and pleased to see the towpath improvements and also the work on the weed and dredging. Property Update Katie Hughes Key Drivers • Create long term income streams to provide a sustainable future for Scottish Canals • Maximise the commercial and socio/economic ‘returns’ from our portfolio and our regeneration nodes = more jobs, more homes and better places • Continually improve and protect the heritage of our assets • Allow sustainable and continual investment in the canal 5 The Lowland Canals Customer Forum Saturday 16 March 2013 The Falkirk Wheel, Falkirk Shovel Ready Projects • Government requests a list of shovel ready projects to stimulate jobs Priority List Jobs Spend Projected 1) Paddlesports £1.0m 3 FT &5 seasonals 2) Canal Employment & Training £0.23m 70 trainees 3) Helix Visitor Hub £0.6m 15 FT over 8months 4) Visitor Destination Development TFW £0.75m 4 FT 5) Bowling Harbour Regeneration £1.0m 3FT 6) Public Realm improvements Speirs Wharf £1.0m 2.5 FT 7) Living on Water Development £1.1m 4.25 FT 8) Speirs Wharf Footbridge £0.25m 1FT 9) Caledonian Canoe Trail Investment £0.13m 0.65 FT 10) 3 Hydro Schemes £0.5m 0.65 FT 11) Caledonian Camping Strategy 0.15m 0.25 FT Dredging Submitted in First phase but SG requested removal An amazing opportunity Bowling £1m Camping £125k Living on Water £1.05m Paddlesports £1m North Glasgow Public Realm £1.1m New Destinations required to encourage Canal activity & opportunity Active Waterspace due to destinations Destination Development The Waterspace Pilot Projects • Initial consultation undertaken • Positive response generally • Pilot schemes agreed to reduce risk and exposure • Edinburgh – really successful • Inverness – first berth let • Glasgow – Marketing underway • Once all pilots are completed we will consult on the findings and way forward • Use of Click Let 6 The Lowland Canals Customer Forum Saturday 16 March 2013 The Falkirk Wheel, Falkirk Living on Water 10 sites on the Lowlands to be rolled out over 2013/14 Bowling Stage 1: Clearing landscaping for access to the bridge Temporary facades to the arches Community beach tidy up New Signage at the entrance Formation of a landscaped area in front of the arches Stage 2: New Entrance and car park Refurbished Bridge to provide a walkway and link with cycle routes and village New Shop fronts Woodland Management Clean-up of Bowling Harbour Animation of the Boatyard North Glasgow Public Realm Linking Applecross to Paddlesports Lighting plan to improve security Public realm to Speaker Martin’s Locks Enabling moorings North Canal Bank Street towpath Speirs Wharf Bridge Port Dundas Business Park ~ Scottish Canals first strategic acquisition • Purchased by Bigg Regeneration (50:50 SLP between SC and Igloo Regeneration – Part of the Aviva Group) • 246,700 sq ft mixed use on a 7.4 acre site • Purchased for £3.66m reflecting a yield of 14.1% • Current net income of £545k per annum • 50% vacant at present • Proactive management and marketing strategy now adopted. Full business plan is being compiled • First letting of £14k pa achieved 7 The Lowland Canals Customer Forum Saturday 16 March 2013 The Falkirk Wheel, Falkirk Purchase of 1-3 Payne Street ~ The opportunity • Purchase by Bigg Regeneration SLP • £545k equity provides 50% share •