Words: John Baron
Photos: Kelvin Wakefield
A hot summer and one of the driest springs on record has been blamed on the closure of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal through West Leeds.
The Canal and River Trust said the canal was ‘one of the most severely impacted waterways in Yorkshire’.
Locks along the canal are currently closed and some sections have almost completely dried up, leaving some boats stranded.
In a statement issued today, a spokesperson for the Canal and River Trust said: “Our canal network is feeling the effects of one of the driest springs on record and several heatwaves already this summer.
“Our charity has been monitoring the situation closely to introduce measures to preserve water levels across those waterways most affected.
“The Leeds & Liverpool Canal has been the most severely impacted waterway in the Yorkshire region.
“At the end of May we closed locks along several sections of the canal and reduced operating hours through lock flights, such as Bingley Five Rise Locks. At the start of July we closed all locks to save water to help keep boats afloat, protect the wildlife that lives in the canal, and safeguard the canal infrastructure itself.
“Despite some encouraging heavy downpours, our charity isn’t yet able to reopen the locks along the Leeds & Liverpool Canal.
“The rainfall has quickly been absorbed into the dry landscape, meaning there’s unfortunately been little water making its way into the canal or its reservoirs.
“The rain we’ve seen is a great start and we’re hoping for further steady rainfall over several weeks to top up water levels to get the canal back open for boating.
“It’s important to stress that towpaths are still very much open for walking and cycling or simply to spend time in nature.”
The spokesperson said recent repair works at Oddy Locks have been completed.
Yorkshire Water this week announced that its reservoirs are at 32.6% capacity, compared with around 73% for this period in an average year.
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