IT HAS been some time since my last column due to a very heavy work load since becoming a project manager. But then one does need to earn a living to pay the bills. What spare time that I have had, has been spent repairing damage caused by boating work-shy low-life.
NBTA members abuse visitor moorings
The local members of the National Bargee Travellers Association (NBTA) are continuing to abuse the visitors moorings in March. One of which, the green 70ft narrowboat, pictured and that was also pictured in my last column, is still moored in the same place.
It has now been there for over 36 weeks. This is really taking the mickey, when you consider that the time limit is only 36 hours. The other four keep moving between the town moorings and the ones in West End Park. The owners of these five boats are anti-social in their actions as they are taking up half the space on the visitors moorings.
The need for mooring by-laws in March
This clearly shows the need for mooring by-laws which the secretary of the local IWA claims are not needed stating that the council should just use its land owner's powers. The fact is they are very limited.
Over the years my family, like other land owners, have had travellers invade our lands. You cannot remove them at the point of a shotgun (Tony Martin Method) or any other use of force. The police will simply tell you to get a Court Order which costs money and takes between seven and ten days to get. Then there are costs to enforce the Court Order and to prevent them from returning you would need to get a court injunction.
Even after that you have the cost of clearing up the mess they leave. So in the end your bank balance is much lighter. It is for this reason that no action has been taken against these 'Bargee Travellers' by the council or by land owners outside town.
Recovering the costs from these travellers; not a hope.
Attacks on boats and owners
The owner of the overstaying red Springer that was pictured last time has claimed that the notice stuck on her boat was a 'hate crime' (The boat had not moved for over a month). The notice text was Will the owner of this vessel please remove. This is a 36 hour mooring and other boat owners are not having the pleasure of using these moorings.
We can all agree that this was polite. Since then your scribe has been under attack from the owner of this boat and her fellow Bargee Travellers. Both on myself (including an attack in broad daylight outside the entrance to the marina) and on the boat as well. Some of the damage done to the boats in town has included expanding foam sprayed down the stove flue and also into the engine exhaust causing irreparable damage.
Spray painted boat
A few weeks ago, one of them sneaked in to the marina in the dead of night and spray painted offensive language on the side of the boat claiming that your scribe was a 'paedophile' which was poorly spelled. This claim was totally untrue and there is reason to believe this was an attempt to get other moorers in the marina to attack your scribe.
This attack has backfired on them for any support in the marina that they may have had has since gone. With many people disgusted with this act, she now claims that I did it myself so she would get the blame. On the night that this crime took place I was actually away for the weekend on the South Coast. The police have done nothing as there is a policy of hands-off toward travellers.
As for the spray painted offensive language, I was able removed it using paint gun cleaner as the boat had been given a good coat of marine wax last Autumn which insured that the spray paint could not get a good bond, otherwise the side of the boat would have needed repainting. It still needs to be T-cut and buffed, but that can wait until it gets warmer. Thanks to Gary in the paint shed at Foxes Marina for the tip about using paint gun cleaner to remove the spray paint.
Break-ins still continuing along the riverside.
Boats and sheds are still being broken into along the riverbank in the Fenland town of March. With no sign of the local police catching anyone. It would help if the police were out on the beat and not in the canteen. Some people have started leaving boxes out to prevent damage to their boats.
Middle Level Boat Registration Act
The Middle Level Commissioners (MLC) have submitted a Bill to Parliament, which has since passed its first reading in the Commons and the House of Lords. It is currently waiting its second reading in the Commons.
The draft Bill will then be followed by bye-laws, made under the Bill's by-law making powers, which will need to be confirmed by Defra and will be based on the provisions already consulted on and those provisions previously in the Order which had to be omitted from the Act.
During the period after, hopefully, the Act has been passed, the MLC will finalise the detail and discuss the position further with users and others to give some firmer indication of time-scales and charging.
Charging is not therefore the only driver of the present proposals, since the MLC would wish to ensure that vessels on the Commissioners' waters are safe, carry appropriate insurance and that they have appropriate powers to properly control navigation on their waters. The MLC have consulted on the present provisions over a long period and, with limited exceptions, the provisions now proposed were contained in the Draft Order and bye-laws that the MLC attempted to bring in some 10 years ago and on which the MLC have worked with boating organisations.
The MLC have assured me that it would wish to continue to take users with them when (hopefully) the new provisions come in. They also assured me that they will not be 'springing' anything on us, the boaters, and that there will be a ‘period of grace' for compliance with the new regime.
Readers questions on the Act
A few weeks ago I contacted Iain Smith who has stepped down as CEO of the MLC, but has stayed on to oversee the introduction of the new Act, with a number of questions that readers had concerning the incoming Boat Registration requirements, due to the misinformation that is being spread by the supporters of Bargee Travellers Association who are against any form of registration.
1) Annual Registration: It is noted that in the Bill there is no requirement to provide details of home mooring. Has this been missed out? As owners with legal Middle Level moorings expected it to be included, therefore removing the current problem of boats without moorings just drifting around, mooring where ever they like.
Parliament as mentioned above, required us to keep the Bill as short as possible and to deal with other aspects through byelaws. At present there is no general mooring allowed on Commissioners' owned channels and we have in the past considered this more of a landowner issue. We also note that this point was not mentioned in the consultation but we would consider this as a requirement if it was something that users generally really felt was necessary.
2) With regards to End of Garden moorings, Do you intend to follow CaRT practice of charging the owners an annual fee for mooring against their own land?
This question depends on your precise meaning. Where mooring takes place on a riparian channel, ie where, unusually in relation to the Middle Level rivers, the adjoining owners are deemed to own to the midpoint of the channel eg on Well Creek or the Nene, then we would not envisage that a charge for mooring would be levied. Most of the Middle Level system is however owned by the Commissioners and any mooring on our owned channels, eg Forty Foot would only be permitted with the Commissioners' consent and then on such terms as the Commissioners thought fit. This however, is already the present practice supported by court decisions and any change in relation to the Commissioners' owned waters would be a matter for MLC policy and not for the proposed new powers.
3) Annual registration fee expected. This is of some concern to some readers on fixed incomes. They would like to know roughly how much to save each month over the next year to pay the first annual fee.
I cannot as yet give a firm indication either as to the fee or the date on which it or the proposed new regime will become effective. This will to a very large extent depend on the Parliamentary timetable and also following the enactment of the Bill, the subsequent making of bye-laws which will need to be advertised and confirmed by DEFRA. What I can say, however is that once the Bill is enacted and we have some certainty over our powers, we will be holding discussions with users on the details of what is proposed.
We will also be holding discussions with the EA concerning reciprocal arrangements. Your readers will not therefore face the prospect of a change happening overnight since we will need to give a reasonable period of warning and grace for those affected to make the then required arrangements. If your readers are at this stage looking for a general indication of charge levels, I can only suggest that the levels charged by the EA and the Cam Conservators are noted although I cannot stress enough that the Commissioners have not yet reached any decision in this respect, as the power to do so does not yet exist, and would consider the Middle Level position and our own costs and navigation works programme before assessing the appropriate level. It has also been suggested that there should be a phased introduction of any such charges and the Commissioners would give consideration to this request.
Project Fear—the IWA version
Last month, CaRT's poodle the Inland Waterways Association (IWA) launched it's own version of Project Fear as regards to the Great Ouse and the Nene claiming that both rivers were facing long-term closures on health and safety grounds. As part of its campaign that EA controlled navigations should be handed over to the failing CaRT. It is the CaRT controlled navigations are at more risk of closures on health and safety grounds.
The Environment Agency statement:
'We are aware of the Inland Waterways Association campaign and have been in correspondence with Les Etheridge, IWA's National Chairman. We have re-assured IWA there is no immediate risk that we will close any of our navigations and we take stewardship role very seriously regarding our statutory navigation duties. We are committed to doing all we can to make our navigations sustainable'.
Good use made of funding
The EA has made good use of its funding and has not wasted money on daft things like waterside artworks, duck lanes and other daft items. The Great Ouse and the Nene are in very good order and you can see where the money has been spent. On the Nene 16 years ago when I first came down, most of the guillotine locks were manually operated. Today only three remain to be electrified, the delay being due to there being no nearby power lines to the locks. Why not use solar power? It was tried at Tichmarch Lock, but the panels which were mounted on top of the guillotine were stolen within a week of being installed.
When boaters leave CaRT waters at Northampton after fighting their way down the leaking Northampton Fight, they notice the change and most are impressed with the condition of the river. And if you need to contact EA for help, the control room is manned 24/7. Or you can phone the local river inspector by mobile. Getting hold of CaRT outside office hours is more of a problem.
Keeping the system in good repair
Part of keeping the system in good repair is reducing the risk of damage. For that reason the guillotine locks are left empty and the guillotines raised. If the gate was left down, any debris floating down the river would get caught up in the gate mechanism and jamming it, which then would require someone from EA to come and remove it. With the guillotine raised, any debris will just wash through over the top gates and out of the lock. So David, there is your answer.
The added benefit - it does prevent the use of the locks as swimming pools which is a problem in some places.
Locks out of use
Harlam Hill Lock (pictured) on the Ancholme, which only gives access to the last one and half miles to the head of navigation at Bishopbridge Weir. Few boats used the lock when it was in use. Eighty percent of the boats registered are sea going. The river above the lock is narrow with only room to turn a 35ft boat.
Access from inland is via the Humber which is not for the faint hearted. Passage through South Ferriby Lock is limited to three hours either side of high tide. Underpowered boats risk being dragged by the river flow out into the North Sea or getting stuck on the many extensive mud banks to the north of Ferriby Sluice, which are exposed at low tide.
Dedham Mill Lock on the Stour. Not connected to the main inland system. Only unpowered craft (those that are peddled, rowed or sailed) can travel the whole length of the Stour Navigation. Powered craft are restricted to the length between Ballingdon Bridge and Henny Street at the top end of the river near Sudbury apart from the Stour Trust Trip boats. As for all three locks on the Stour, all can only be operated by EA staff. The Stour Trust are continuing with their plans and negotiations to restore this lock at the earliest opportunity. And are also proceeding with plans to complete the restoration of Stratford St Mary lock in Autumn.
Welches Dam Lock (pictured) on the Old Bedford River another rarely used lock when it was opened (Less than a dozen boats year). As for the Old Bedford River last year saw the first boat to enter the river this decade from Great Ouse through the Old Bedford Sluice.
That lock training video
Some months ago, Victor moaned about the lock demo in the RYA Inland Helmsman Training video. That the wrong method was being used. At the Southampton Boat Show I took the matter up with Richard Falk the RYA Training Manager. He confirmed that the method used in the training video and in the course notes is the CaRT official method of lock operation.
RYA Courses
The RYA courses are currently delivered in 47 countries through a network of over 2,500 recognised training centres. The RYA offers practical training in dinghy sailing, windsurfing, yachting, motor cruising, power-boating, personal watercraft and inland waterways, as well as a range of shore-based training courses.
RYA is given responsibility for issuing certificates of competence on behalf of the British Government through the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA),
So who is RYA?
Royal Yachting Association (RYA) is not just for yachting. It is the national body for all forms of boating, including dinghy and yacht racing, motor and sail cruising, RIBs and sports boats, powerboat racing, windsurfing, canal and river boat cruising, and personal watercraft, with over 100,000 full members the majority of whom choose to go afloat for purely recreational non-competitive pleasure on coastal and inland waters plus another 500,000 through over 1,500 RYA affiliated clubs. With a membership of this size the RYA are the primary consultative body for the activities it represents to the Government.
Norway to build the worlds first ship tunnel
Work is soon to start on a 5,900 ft long, 148ft high, 118ft wide tunnel, complete with towpath, through the Stad peninsula in Western Norway. Designed to handle ships up to 16,000 tons, large enough for the Hurtigruten coastal express ships therefore allowing them to bypass the most dangerous section of route. Total cost: Approx. (NOK 2,3 billion) £221 million Construction time: Approximately 3-4 years.
Kelvin Alexander-Duggan