Residents have raised concerns over water levels at the canal in Newport, claiming it is "completely dried up" and is threatening wildlife. Locals have raised concerns over the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal running through Rogerstone which they say has been suffering from low water levels for "months" and has been left "completely dried up" on several occasions.
The canal, which sprawls across several local authorities, has faced issues with water levels in recent years due to a combination of low rainfall, structural concerns and lack of water supply from higher ground. Monmouthshire, Brecon and Abergavenny Canals Trust, a charity which works alongside councils and Natural Resources Wales, said on Thursday that it was "extremely concerned about the lack of maintenance" on the canal.
There have also been fears over leaks from the canal, but the council said last year that it had not identified any leak issues. It comes as Dwr Cymru announced a hosepipe ban for parts of Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire in order to preserve vital water supplies amid the driest year in the UK in 46 years.
Read more: Hosepipe ban announced for parts of Wales amid driest year since 1976
Newport City Council said some of the issues with water are due to factors outside its boundary area. It said it was working with other groups to resolve the issues and undertook some channel clearing work, but that water levels had not improved due to lack of rainfall. It says it currently has "no water sources to divert" to the area.
Malcolm Jones, 68, lives near the canal in Rogerstone and said it was an "eyesore" for residents.
"It's gotten even worse," he said. "There had been a drop of water but with the sun every day it's completely dried up. It's from 14 Locks until the golf course. It's been going on for the last few years but it's been particularly bad the last few months. Once there's a drought it empties right down."
Malcolm said residents had been "up in arms" about the water levels and had been in contact with the council on numerous occasions. "It's not just the lack of water - it's the weeds and everything. We live alongside it so we see it all the time. It's not a very nice place to be really - it's an eyesore."
Paul Thomas, volunteer director for the 14 Locks Canal Centre, said there were a number of reasons behind the low levels at the canal. "It's a historical problem," he explained. "The canal used to be connected to two reservoirs. Cwmcarn used to have one which collapsed and was never rebuilt. Back in the '60s there was another reservoir which was disconnected from the canal after a road was built. So there is a lot less water coming down to the canal than there used to be."
Paul said the historical issues had been compounded by a lack of maintenance of the canal over the years, something both the centre and the Monmouthshire, Brecon and Abergavenny Canals Trust had been repeatedly calling for action on.
"There are fish, ducks, moorhen birds [living by the canal] and even though people see a lot of greenery as a positive, it can also take away from the natural habitat of the wildlife. They need water to survive - if the whole canal is covered in weeds, then the wildlife cannot survive.
"We agree with the residents and Newport City Council in particular needs to put more attention and investment into the canal."
A Newport City Council spokesperson said: "It has been well documented that low water levels in the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal in Newport are caused by issues outside the city boundaries.
"We are working with partner organisations such as NRW, neighbouring councils and the Canal Trust to manage penning levels and water flow through the system. However, we are restricted by volume available from the higher sections of the system which are experiencing issues.
"In recent months we undertook a limited amount of channel clearing, but unfortunately it was not sufficient to improve levels due to lack of rainfall. We are aware that water levels are low but at present there are no water sources to divert to this area.
"Fortunately, the majority of the fish stock was relocated from this pond to sections where the levels are holding, so there should be limited impact on the aquatic species, but we appreciate that people are concerned about the water fowl and other birds and we will monitor the situation.
"The council is seeking funding to undertake de-silting, channel re-lining and other works. Newport has about seven miles of canal within the city and it manages this community asset with limited resources. Funds that are set aside for standard management are often diverted to deal with emergency works such as leaks, vandalism and encroachment.
"Where possible we have used external resource to tackle issues such as surface maintenance and land management, through the creation of active travel routes along the towpaths, Invaluable work is also carried out by the Canal Trust and Countryside Service volunteer groups.
"We fully understand the frustrations of local people and will continue to seek funding to improve the canal and keep the community updated of any works that may be undertaken to help alleviate the situation."
Caerphilly Council was contacted for comment.
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