Montgomery Canal Conservation Management Strategy (1.2MB PDF)

7.4 NAVIGATION
This section expands on the policies established in Section 6.4. It sets out some of the details of how the objectives of
the restoration will be met, and which partners or external bodies will be responsible for them.
7.4.1 General management of navigation levels
There is a long-standing arrangement (dating back to the 1987 Act) for the introduction or increase of navigation on any
one section of the Canal to be accompanied by the creation of suitable compensatory habitats and the implementation of
appropriate management and monitoring.
1) Levels of traffic, the status of the nature conservation value and other relevant parameters will be assessed annually
and then new levels of traffic and changes to the management regime for the coming year agreed.
2) The target level of navigation in Wales is 2500 boat movements per year.
The actual number will reflect the monitoring informs management principle, and subject to achieving the required
ecological standards (defined in Chapter 10) may be higher or lower.
3) Within Wales, navigation will be re-introduced at a precautionary level, with small and steady increases towards a
dynamic balance. It is not assumed that all changes in nature conservation value in the canal itself are automatically
due to boat traffic and other parameters will be monitored and controlled too.
4) Within England, navigation levels agreed within the Partnership (currently 2,500 boat movements per year), will only
be lifted after the full area of new nature reserve is fully established.
Levels of navigation may therefore vary along the canal, for instance to allow for localised trip boat/day boat operations
or to take account of local conditions without this necessarily affecting numbers of visiting boats.
This process is summarised in Figure 6.8. Increases in navigation are therefore tied to overall improvements in the
ecological resource, or to change in management that offsets any potential impacts. Improved boat design, reductions in
boat speed along sensitive sections and encouraging out of season navigation are all ways to mitigate impacts, and will
help achieve higher levels of navigation than would otherwise have been possible. Figure 6.9 demonstrates a potential
shift of navigation away from the sensitive spring season to the autumn.
5) Navigation will be held at current levels (2,500 in England, 500 in Wales and 0 in non-navigable sections) until the
offline reserves and in channel measures for the relevant length have been established.
In addition positive management of other lengths must also be underway (see “Monitoring Informs Action”,
Section 6.3.4).
6) The first reserves will be allowed a minimum of three full growing seasons to establish before navigation is
re-introduced or increased in the currently isolated length. Subsequent reserves will have a minimum of two full
growing seasons to establish. Monitoring will take place over this period.
The likely phased funding for the restoration will therefore seek to support the new habitat creation early in the process,
to ensure that the reserves have had time to establish sustainably before the restoration of navigation is complete.
7) In areas where navigation is currently zero or 500 bmy (Wales and dry sections in England) the first step increase
(once reserves are fully established) will be to 1250 bmy.
8) From this point (and initially in existing navigable lengths in England) navigation levels will be reviewed annually and
increased only in small increments in accordance with Monitoring Informs Action.
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