Sustainability
Whilst attracting new boaters, anglers and visitors to the waterways is a priority, we are very conscious that this must be achieved in harmony with the historic and natural environment. We know that heritage and natural habitats are two of the most important attributes that attract people to our waterways and a great deal of our time goes into ensuring they are managed sustainably. The waterways provide important habitat for a diverse range of wildlife and we work closely with the Environment Agency, Natural England, Scottish Environment Protection Agency and local environmental groups. We are also the third largest owner of listed buildings and structures in England and Wales, so we work closely with English Heritage, local authority conservation officers and canal societies.
Find out more about waterway wildlife and waterway heritage.
The waterways and climate change
In a world where global warming and the over-use of scarce resources has become a critical issue, we recognise we must do more to reduce our impact on the environment. We are well placed to make a positive contribution. We can do more to change the way we operate, and the waterways can offer opportunities to help others, from freight projects like Prescott Lock in East London to supporting sustainable heating, cooling and energy generation schemes nationwide.
Canal water cooling
Technological advances are beginning to prove themselves in providing cost efficient cooling for waterside properties in the UK. Using heat exchange technology, canal water provides sustainable cooling in place of burning fossil fuels or using large amounts of electricity to power air cooling units. BW already has working examples in the Mailbox development in the heart of Birmingham and at our mooring basin facilities at Auchinstarry in Scotland.
We are working with increasing numbers of developers who are interested in this environmentally friendly approach to cooling their premises using canal water. We see this as a growth area for our business and we will be looking to encourage the use of heat pumps in many more existing and planned waterside developments.
To find our more visit our cooling and heating buildings section.
Micro-hydroelectricity generation
We facilitated the installation of a micro generating plant at Beeston on the River Trent in 2000. Technology has continued to advance and we believe it is now economically viable to generate electricity on other parts of our network including river weirs and disused locks. We see this as another growth area and we will be working with our partners to offer this technology to waterside businesses across our network.
Water Management
Managing our water resources from reservoir to sea is central to what we do. We continue to invest in our reservoirs, in controlling leakage, in backpumping and in our state-of-the-art computerised SCADA water management system, all designed to control water flows and minimize our use of water. We have two billion litres of water in our system everyday so we can make a big impact by continually improving our use and management of this scarce resource.
Waterborne Freight
Canals were originally built for the transportation of goods and although freight is not the main purpose of the waterway network today, British Waterways tries to facilitate it wherever we can.
There continues to be a role for carriage of freight by water on our larger waterways and in recent years we have focused on aggregates, container, waste and recycling sectors in particular. There has been growing interest in the potential for freight traffic as fuel costs have risen and awareness of its environmental benefits has increased.
During 2007/08 we have worked closely with the government's promotional body, Sea & Water, to bring together diverse interests in the industry to help to promote freight in appropriate markets and to ensure the right framework of grants and town planning support for the sector.
To effectively carry freight, waterways often need substantial additional investment, and we need the same upfront investment whether we move one or one hundred freight vessels. This additional investment often comes in the form of government grant funding.
We work closely with, and receive funding from, organisations such as Transport for London to explore and progress viable freight and transportation opportunities on our waterways.
