Work carried out at Newry Ship Canal described as 'vandalism'

A Newry man who has spent his life promoting Newry Canal and its potential has slammed works that seem to have been carried out by the Department for Infrastructure, on the bank of Newry Ship Canal. What appears to be flood/ drainage work was carried out along the Omeath Road following last year's flooding in Newry. Over 100 pipes have been laid through the canal bank at regular intervals with the approximately ten inch diameter pipes remaining uncovered meaning that any rubbish on the road can easily find its way into the canal.

Oliver McGauley has been instrumental in promoting angling on Newry Canal to a worldwide audience and indeed was the Irish team manager at the World Freshwater Angling Championships when they were held on Newry Canal back in 1982. 

He is outraged at the damage done to the bank of the canal and feels that no-one cares "we have a facility here, we have competition water here but it's going to wreck and ruin,  nobody seems to care about that end of things. I would say that if it was somewhere in South Armagh or the Mournes there would be a lot more attention paid to it."

"I've been to Holland on two occasions, I've been to various parts of England promoting with the Northern Ireland Tourist Board, promoting Newry Canal as an angling facility. I have on tape some angling specialists from England saying it's one of the finest angling waters in Europe. People have been in awe and praise of the facility or the canal and the fish stocks." he continued.

Newry Canal and Newry Ship Canal are scheduled monuments from at least February 2000 which includes "the canal bed and banks, spit of land between the canal and Newry river and sites of the two earlier tidal locks." To carry out work on a scheduled monument you normally need consent for "above or below ground, that might affect a scheduled monument in Northern Ireland."

Oliver explains the work done "As far as I could see it was supposed to be some type of a flood relief situation and It seemed to be a very panicky situation in the sense that that it was hastily done, carelessly done without any thought for the cosmetic end of the bank of the canal, which I think is a national monument, not supposed to be touched or interfered with. There's 100 gaps in it from Shanes Bridge junction to Victoria Lock. It's a disgrace. It's disgusting, it's vandalism."

He added "I'm not sure what it's all about but I've been associated with this canal all my life since I was 10 year old and living near it. I've been a supporter, user, involved in every canal organisation there was to do with the canal all my life. I am disgusted and surprised that people have authorised and approved this and walked away from it as far as I can see."

The pipes appear to be about 10 inch diameter and are embedded in the bank with a base of them level with the road allowing anything floating along the road to enter them and thus the canal. 

Oliver continues "There's no protection here for items of rubbish or whatever else is on the road. Roadwash going directly into the canal. There are people, canal organisations spending a lot of their time doing voluntary things like clear ups on the Albert Basin and lifting rubbish and what-not and yet, there's 100 pipes put along the canal bank here that will allow all the rubbish from the road to go into to the canal. Does that make sense? To me It doesn't."

Oliver believes the banks should be restored to the way they were before the works and ground level drains with a grating to stop rubbish put in.

Newry.ie have asked DfI for comment.