WELL it looks like the excuses have started regarding the major leak at Dutton (Repaired T&M breach leaking), writes Allan Richards.
According to Canal & River Trust (CaRT), the canal embankment is 200 years old and is constructed of sandy material which makes it more susceptible to problems than other waterways.The Dutton breach
So was the poor construction of this embankment responsible for the major breach at Dutton that happened shortly after the Trust was formed? Was ‘sand' also responsible for the overtopping at Croxton that happened at the same time?
Certainly not. At the time, Vince Moran, CaRT's Operations Director, blamed the weather saying ‘As to what caused the breach at Dutton, we'll never 100% know, however it was certainly down to the saturated ground from such heavy rainfall, probably combined with a tree (still in leaf) that had fallen and destabilised the bank'.
He went on to say that no leaks had been recorded at the embankment prior to the breach.
As such, it is quite right that boaters should now be asking if the current leak is due to a bodged repair where the new bentonite geomembrane seal joins the old puddled clay.
Mon & Brec
Within minutes of announcing that the Dutton leak was a major one and confirming that the T&M would be closed for weeks, the Trust announced that it was again closing the Mon & Brec (this time just South of Talybont) to fix one of over 300 known leaks.
Surprisingly, no mention has been made of the Mon & Brec being built on sand!
[Canal & River Trust spent £2,492,317 repairing the Trent & Mersey Canal at Dutton and Croxton with less than 1% of that money being raised by appeal. About 95% of the £2.5m was paid to framework contractor Kier for undertaking the repair work. This calendar year CaRT have had no less than six 'high priority' defects scheduled for repair at Dutton. None of the work however relates to leaks.]