Senedd to debate future of canal at risk of running dry

SENEDD members are set to debate a 13,000-name petition calling for urgent action to save the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal.

- CHRIS HAINES

The Senedd petitions committee agreed to put forward the 13,847-signature petition for a debate amid concerns the 200-year-old canal could run dry.

The Canal & River Trust (CRT), which runs the canal, warned of a water shortage in March before agreeing an emergency supply reportedly costing the charity up to £100,000 a week.

But petitioners called for a long-term solution to safeguard the future of the Mon and Brec "one of the most picturesque and tranquil waterways in the UK".

Built in the 1790s, the 35-mile network of canals runs from Brecon to Newport through the Bannau Brycheiniog National Park and attracts around three million visitors a year.

The CRT relies on water abstraction to supply the canal, with up to 90% coming from the River Usk, and held exemptions until 2018, when regulations on licensing were changed.

Natural Resources Wales (NRW) oversees licensing, limiting the volume of water that can be extracted to protect the River Usk and Severn Estuary special areas of conservation.

CRT appealed against licence limitations but Planning and Environmental Decisions Wales, an arm of the Welsh Government, rejected the appeals on environmental grounds.