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Agenda and minutes

Contact: Sarah Lees  Member Services Officer

Items
No. Item

1.

ELECTION OF CHAIRMAN

To elect a Chairman for 2016/17 (the Terms of Reference state that the appointment should be made from the Devon County Councillor representation for 2016/17).

Minutes:

RESOLVED that Cllr R F Radford be elected Chairman of the Committee for the municipal year 2016/17.

 

(Proposed by Cllr D P O Hanon and seconded by A Pilgrim)

2.

ELECTION OF VICE CHAIRMAN

To elect a Vice Chairman for 2016/17 (the Terms of Reference state that this appointment should come from the Mid Devon District Councillor representation for 2016/17).

Minutes:

RESOLVED that Cllr Mrs S Griggs be elected Vice Chairman of the Committee for the municipal year 2016/17.

 

(Proposed by A Pilgrim and seconded by Z Grochala)

3.

APOLOGIES

To receive any apologies for absence.

Minutes:

The following members of the Committee had sent their apologies for the meeting:

 

Cllr Mrs H Bainbridge (Mid Devon District Council)

Cllr Ken Browse (Halberton Parish Council)

Jeremy Ison (Devon Wildlife Trust)

Cllr Clarissa Slade (Mid Devon District Council)

Cllr Colin Slade (Mid Devon District Council)

Malcom Trump (Tiverton & District Angling Club)

 

4.

PUBLIC QUESTION TIME

To receive any questions relating to items on the agenda from members of the public and replies thereto.

 

Minutes:

There were no questions from the members of the public who were present.

5.

MINUTES pdf icon PDF 152 KB

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 1 March 2016 (please find attached).

Minutes:

The minutes from the meeting held on 1 March 2016, having been previously circulated, were approved as a correct record and SIGNED by the Chairman.

 

6.

MATTERS ARISING

To consider any matters arising from the minutes of the previous meeting.

Minutes:

There were no matters arising from the minutes of the previous meeting.

7.

CHAIRMAN'S ANNOUNCEMENTS

To receive any announcements that the Chairman may wish to make.

Minutes:

The Chairman had no announcements to make.

8.

TERMS OF REFERENCE / MEMBERSHIP REVIEW pdf icon PDF 172 KB

To consider the Terms of Reference and Membership of the Committee (please find attached).

Minutes:

Members considered the Terms of Understanding * and Membership of the Committee.

 

Mr Zig Grochala informed the Committee that he had two announcements to make. Firstly, Nigel Cuthbert who had been his nominated deputy on the Committee, had recently sold his business and therefore Zig had asked that Mr Graham Moore, the landlord of The Globe in Sampford Peverell, be his nominated deputy in the future which Mr Moore had agreed to.

 

His second announcement related to the fact that he was in the final stages of selling his business and did not feel that it would be appropriate for him to be a representative on the Committee going forwards. In the short term, he had asked if Graham Moore would be the representative of the Canal Business Group. He considered that Mr Moore would be a knowledgeable and worthy replacement and hoped that he would be welcomed by the JAC. He stated that it had been a privilege to serve on the Committee and he wished it well.

 

The Rights of Way and Country Parks Manager stated that Sustrans no longer had a Devon representative and the current nominated representative was not able to make the meetings. A suggestion was made that a more local representative be sought as it was vital to have representation from someone in the cycling community. It was AGREED that the Committee follow this up and notify the Committee when a replacement had been found.

 

RESOLVED that the Terms of Understanding and the Membership of the Committee be agreed subject to the following amendments:

 

a)    The Canal Business Group be represented by Mr Graham Moore, landlord of The Globe public house in Sampford Peverell in the future;

 

b)    An alternative representative be sought from Sustrans or the cycling community to represent the interests of cyclists on the Committee.

 

(Proposed by the Chairman)

9.

PROGRESS REPORT AND FUTURE PROGRAMME OF WORKS pdf icon PDF 2 MB

Report of the Head of Public Rights of Way and Country Parks (DCC) informing Members of the work that has taken place to date.

Minutes:

Consideration was given to a report * of the Public Rights of Way and Country Parks Manager.

 

Arising thereon:

 

Weed management

 

The Ranger team had been clearing water soldier since March with the new weedboat. It had been a difficult task given that the water becomes brown very quickly making it difficult to see. However, they had managed to stop it from completely covering the canal. A great deal of the team’s time was spent doing this but they were getting good results by starting earlier and finishing later in the year.

 

Discussion took place regarding:

 

·         The Tiverton Canal Company had been unable to operate the motorised boat side of their business this year because of the worsening problem with weed. This needed to be dealt with for the long term future of the canal.

·         The Mid Devon Mooring company stated that their customers were suffering as a result of the weed which was underneath the landing stages and they had lost one of their regular boats. Blanket weed was a particular problem on this stretch of the canal. Boat propellers needed to be strong enough to cut through.  

·         More movement by resident boats or visiting boats was needed to dislodge the weed.

·         Less weed was found in the shady areas, increased light levels exacerbated the problem.

·         Large inputs of silt washed off adjacent roads containing nutrients was helping the weeds to grow. This was very difficult to control.

·         Recent mild winters had not helped, a cold winter might lead to a lessening of the problem.

·         A large number of farm field beside the canal have land drains that drain to the canal. A reed bed project to reduce nutrient inputs would be undertaken as part of the stage two works, however, the installation of the tilting weirs was a priority at the moment in order to ensure the future safety of the canal. The engineer leading on this was tied up with other projects meaning that there would be some delay.

·         Climate change was also a factor in the increased growth of weed.

·         A well researched answer needed to be found.

·          

Further discussion took place regarding capacity of the Ranger Service to spend the majority of their time clearing weed. The question was asked as to whether there was any opportunity for volunteers to operate the weedboat. Checks would have to be made with the Devon County Council Health and Safety team. Operating the boat would require skilled training in order to avoid damage and breakage. It was suggested that there were individuals in the Friends Group who, having had the appropriate training, would give up their time freely for the good of the canal. This was something that needed to be explored.

 

The Canal Manager also stated that he would ask Jeremy Ison, an expert botanist and member of the Committee whether anything could be done in addition to the current works to address the problem. He also stated that he would ask him if anybody  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

10.

SUMMER SITE VISIT AND MEETING WITH AGGREGATE INDUSTRIES?

To receive a verbal report from those who attended the site visit and meeting with Aggregate Industries in July.

Minutes:

The Canal Manager provided a brief summary of the events that had taken place at the summer site visit and the meeting with Aggregate Industries (AI). AI had told the Committee that they were awaiting the response of the Environment Agency before moving forwards. The Committee had not been satisfied with this explanation as to why the process was being held up. A summary of the conversation that had taken place with AI and the actions agreed had been circulated to the Committee but the Canal Manager had yet to hear back from AI.

 

It was AGREED that the Chairman, who was also the Chairman of the Westleigh Quarry Liaison Group and was also the Ward Member, personally undertake a specific interest in this issue and pursue the necessary parties where possible for a successful outcome. The Committee requested that they receive a report from the Chairman at the next meeting as to any progress. The Chairman stated that he would contact Laurie Quinn at AI as a first step.   

 

 

11.

REVIEW OF BOAT PERMIT DISCOUNTS

To consider the current charging scheme for boat permit discounts.

Minutes:

The Canal Manager informed the Committee that he had received a communication from a concerned member of the public enquiring why there were no boat permit discounts for senior citizens. The consensus view amongst the Committee was that the charges were currently very reasonable and they were not contemplating introducing any discounts at the current time.

 

A brief discussion took place regarding the use of the canal by inflatable canoes and whether all of them paid for a permit. It was explained that it was possible to download a form on line to pay for a permit but that it was not possible to actually pay on line. The County Council software system was being developed to hopefully allow this in the future. The Committee felt that this was vital if more people were to be encouraged to pay and visit the canal.

12.

REVISION AND UPDATE OF THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR BOATING ON THE GRAND WESTERN CANAL

To consider the removal of the outboard motor Power to Boat length restriction.To also consider a review of the Terms and Conditions to align its terminology with that used by other Navigation Authorities.

Minutes:

This item had been requested to be on the agenda by Adam Pilgrim who stated that in order to apply for a permit to use a power boat certain criteria had to be satisfied. This was a standard procedure around the country and made good sense. However he referred to what was in his view historically odd criteria in the Terms and Conditions which stated that ‘Only outboard motors that are no more than two and a half horsepower per metre length of boat are permitted. Devon County Council reserves the right to refuse to issue permits for high powered inboard engines (please contact the Canal manager regarding in board engines).’

 

The consensus view amongst the Committee was that the condition should not be about the horse power of the boat but about the responsibility of the helmsman. It was AGREED that a re-drafted condition be brought back to the Committee with the removal of the above wording.

 

A further brief discussion took place regarding some of the terminology used within the permit document specifically whether the word ‘licence’ would be a better word to use than ‘permit’ with the inference being it may imply more responsibility was expected. The Canal Manager felt that the word ‘permits’ may be easier for members of the public to understand. This was a grey area where further discussion was needed. It was therefore AGREED that a sub group be formed with interested parties to agree a preferred set of wording for the Terms and Conditions and that the sub group report back to the next meeting.

 

 

13.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

To consider any other relevant business.

Minutes:

No items were raised under this item.

14.

DATE OF NEXT MEETING

Tuesday 7 March 2017 at 7.00pm – Exe Room, Phoenix House.

Minutes:

The next meeting would be held on Tuesday 7 March 2017 at 7.00pm.