Kennet & Avon Canal dredging underway

The project will see sections of the banks of the Kennet & Avon Canal in Newbury refurbished following damage caused by American Signal Crayfish. The works are taking place from Hambridge Road to Bulls Lock and at Greenham Lock.

David Berezynskyj, British Waterways’ senior engineer said, ‘We will be dredging the canal, which improves navigation for boats and recycling the dredged material by using it to rebuild the canal banks. Over time boat wash, soil conditions, and also invasive American Signal Crayfish, have all damaged the banks, and now we need to act to avoid any serious damage and reduce the risk of the embankment breaching.’

British Waterways will secure the dredged material in place with a woven geo-technical material that protects the sediment, helping to hold it in place, and importantly, making the area more inhospitable to invasive crayfish. The dredged material will then be planted with reeds to help naturalise the canal banks near to the centre of Newbury.

British Waterways’ ecologist Oda Dijksterhuis said, ‘The crayfish burrow into the banks using their tails to scoop it away. The new material being installed will no longer allow the crayfish to easily dig into the canal banks, causing severe leakage and erosion.’

It is expected that approximately 3,700 tons of dredged material will be recycled and reused during the works, which will help protect and preserve the Kennet & Avon canal, which celebrated its 200th anniversary on 28 December 2010.

By David Foxwell