Lancaster Canal Isolated from the Sea

The port is capable of operating without the gate, allowing the dock (but not the basin) to dry out at low tide. However, the Environment Agency needs the gate as part of its flood defences for the area. The Port Authority had been relying on the Environment Agency to fund the gate replacement, which the Port Authority says it promised it would. The Port Authority also says that its work boats are trapped, and it can only fulfil its Port duties by hiring third party contractors, which is unsustainable and the port is therefore facing a fight for survival. In June 2024 the four affected organisations (Port of Lancaster Commission, Environment Agency, Aquavista and Canal & River Trust) issued a joint statement saying that the dock gate needed to be removed for inspection and repair, and that Lancaster Port Commission were leading on these removal works, which would be part funded by the Environment Agency. Once removed, navigation would be restored. The gate is to be placed on the dock side to undergo further inspection, and this will ultimately inform the extent of repairs that are required. The inspection will be led by the Environment Agency.

Further inspection and possible repairs are also required to the dock basin where the gate attaches. This can only be carried out in a dry working area, which requires a cofferdam to be constructed. The cofferdam will also act to restore some level of protection against flooding, but it will prevent navigation whilst in place.

[The photo, right, shows a coaster in Glasson Dock - by Judy Clegg]