Restoration

By the time the (then) Preservation Society was formed in 1974, all 19 of the locks on the Neath Canal were derelict. Locks 18 and 19 in Glynneath had been buried under the foundations of a roadway and locks 15, 16 and 17, whilst still evident, had been significantly affected by another road improvement scheme. In addition road-bridges at Lamb & Flag, Ysgwyrfa, Resolven, Neath Town Centre, and Giant’s Grave had been lowered and are yet to be modified to allow navigation

Whilst maintained as a water-course on the southern section below Resolven , the northern section had become overgrown with vegetation and the canal-bed silted. Both the Ty Banc lengthman’s cottage and the Tonna canal workshop complex were in a dilapidated condition.

On the Tennant Canal, its course approaching the docks in Swansea had been severed by the creation of a dual carriageway whilst the Aberdulais Aqueduct and Lock were disused and derelict. The interchange basin between the aqueduct and the junction at the ‘Skew Bridge’ was also overgrown and silted.

The following represents a chronological account of the restoration of the canals by the Trust in partnership with the canal owners and other organisations, notably Local Authorities.

Tennant Canal projects are indicated by (TC).

Timeline

1974 - 1976

Commitment to a number of projects by volunteers mainly involving the clearance of vegetation and the canal bed.

1976 - 1984

Aberdulais Basin (TC) fully restored by the Society – later visited by HRH Prince of Wales – project is awarded a Civic Trust Award
Local Authority Involvement – creation of a Joint Consultative Committee with various partners.
Restoration of the canal workshops at Tonna.

1984 – 1994

Neath Canal north of Resolven leased from NCN by Neath Borough Council.
Restoration of seven locks (no’s 8 –14), an aqueduct over the canal, several access bridges, a lengthman’s cottage (Ty Banc) and the construction of a new aqueduct is completed utilising the YTS and MSC schemes, such that the 4¹/₂ mile section to Ysgwrfa is available for navigation by used by the Enfys Trust who operated a trip boat for the disabled and a tea room and gift shop in Ty Banc.
Full-time canal officer employed.
Society leases Aberdulais Basin (TC) and Tonna Canal Workshops (later purchased and restored).
Purchase of two trip boats – ‘Enfys’ (1989) operated for the disabled by Neath Borough Council /NPTCBC and ‘Thomas Dadford (1990) – owned and operated by the Society / Trust
1985 – Council for the Protection of Rural Wales Award
1988 – Restoration of Locks featured on Blue Peter
1991 – Prince of Wales Committee Award
1992 – Civil Trust Award.
Canal Officer – IWA 1^st annual award for contribution to canal restoration
1994 – Europa Nostra Diploma “ for the remarkable recreation of the canal …”

In 1992, the section of canal between Tonna and Abergarwed became heavily polluted by a mine-water discharge. Remedial measures including the construction of a treatment plant and reed bed at Abergarwed to treat the discharge proved successful.

2005 - Present

The canal bed affected by the mine-water discharge was dredged and cleaned out, and damaged walling, sluices and some bridges along this length were restored and rebuilt, the work being completed in December 2005 by the Neath Canal Navigation Co (NCN) under a £2.6m scheme funded by the WDA, B.P. and Objective One funding.
In 2007 the Trust obtains a grant of some £250,000 to restore Ty’n-yr-heol Lock (lock no. 1) in Tonna in order to promote the further extension of the canal northwards.
Further funding is secured by NPTCBC to restore another three locks (no’s 2 ,3 & 4) and to reinstate the Ynysbwllog Aqueduct over the River Neath – the original having been destroyed by a flood in 1979.
The whole scheme is completed by 2010 when further restoration projects are undertaken in preparation for the IWA Trail-boat Rally at Abergarwed in the Spring of 2011.
The new Aqueduct – which is reputed to be the longest single-span aqueduct supporting a narrow-canal in Britain – is highly commended at the Waterways Renaissance Awards and receives an ICE Wales Project Award.
The Trust is successful in campaigning for the canals to be afforded sufficient protection in the NPTCBC Local Development Plan (LDP), and for the inclusion in the LDP Schedule of Designated Canal Structures of some 27 structures for protection – in addition to the 36 or so with existing listed status.
Lock House, Tonna is purchased and restored by a Trustee. The location of the house, stables, workshops, carpenters’ shed and lock – all Grade II listed buildings – is designated a Conservation Area.
The reinstatement of the Tennant Canal into the Prince of Wales Dock is supported by the City and County of Swansea in its LDP – use being made of an existing railway bridge for the proposed re-routing of the canal under the Fabain Way dual-carriageway.
2013 – Trust publication of ‘Proposals for a Regeneration Strategy’ for the canals – distributed to NPTCBC executives and councillors – but with little or no meaningful response
2014 – The Trust is instrumental in creating the Swansea Bay Inland Waterway Partnership – essentially a reconstitution of the Vale of Neath and Swansea Valley Integrated Waterway Partnership which supports the Trust’s proposal to promote the restoration of the Aberdulais Aqueduct in time for its bi-centenary in May 2024.
2016 – The Thomas Dadford celebrates 25 years of continuous public service on the Neath Canal –amounting to a total of some 15,000 volunteer hours.
2017 – The Trust together with the S Wales branch of the IWA initiate a dialogue between St Modwen (Neath Canal Navigation Company) and the Canal and River Trust with a view to the latter acquiring / maintaining the canal, but no agreement is reached.
2020 – Following the flood event at Aberdulais associated with Storm Dennis in which the Aqueduct is implicated, its removal is included as one of a number of flood mitigation options considered by Natural Resources Wales. In response, the Trust seeks the support of the IWA leading to a concerted campaign to save and repair the structure. Given that NRW has yet to publish its final report, the campaign is ongoing.

As the flooding also affects the Canal Depot site at Tonna, it is likely that restoration of the Carpenter’s Shed and Saw-pit will prove to be impracticable.

Given that both canals are deteriorating as a consequence of the loss of income to cover maintenance costs and the withdrawal of financial and overall support from NPTCBC, the Trust is saddened to be preoccupied with its original role of preserving the waterways rather than participating in their regeneration.