Just dump more costs onto Council Taxpayers as Government Grants Slashed.

At the codgers park bench soiree this weekend we were in Astley Park at Seaton Delaval and over our flasks of tea and coffee the chat got around to the environment: and why wouldn’t it in such a lovely and pristine place?. We discussed many different topics eventually leading to the very worrying tale from one of our angling colleagues.

The charity set to look after the surroundings of our waterways, the Canal and Rivers Trust have revealed that it plans to remove most of the bins from towpaths of canals and riversides under their control across Yorkshire and the Northeast. 

The charity said it faces "soaring costs" and the move will save the trust money to pay for waterway repairs. The trust wants other agencies such as councils to become responsible for providing or maintaining bins. The charity says it spent £1.4m nationally emptying bins and clearing fly-tipping from canals in 2022.

Waste management authorities and Unitary Councils are incensed with this latest pressure on their budgets as Austerity 2 kicks in for them and a number of those Councils along with elected Mayors are demanding high level meetings with the Trust, Keep Britain Tidy, Angling organisations and Michael Gove the minister responsible for Council activity, to stop what many believe will become and environmental disaster, not only damaging banksides locally but its thought will also lead to loss of both wildlife and fish stocks.

Angling is one of the highest income earners of revenue for the Canals and Rivers Trust and this 'threatened abuse' to the waterways many people enjoy and love has been critcised heavily by their trade and organising bodies.