We've launched an innovation prospectus, ‘Innovating our canal network’, inviting businesses, universities, utilities, investors, researchers and public sector organisations to help shape the future of the nation's waterways through collaboration, new technologies and fresh thinking.
About the prospectus
The prospectus identifies nine opportunities where innovation could help address some of the biggest challenges facing our 2,000-mile canal network while unlocking new benefits for people, places, nature and the economy. These range from improving the resilience of ageing infrastructure and decarbonising operations, to enhancing biodiversity, bettering the boating experience, supporting local economies, improving wellbeing and exploring new roles for canals in the UK's future water and energy systems.
The launch comes as climate change is placing increasing pressure on water resources across the UK. Following a summer marked by drought conditions in many areas, one of the first opportunities we're highlighting is how innovation could better protect the water within its canal system and strengthen the contribution canals already make to the nation's water security.
Britain's canals supply hundreds of megalitres of water every day to water companies, agriculture and industry. As the country's largest interconnected network of freshwater channels, they also have the potential to play an even greater role in moving water between regions and supporting national resilience to future droughts and changing rainfall patterns.
Water becoming an increasingly valuable resource
The prospectus is being shared with partners across the academic, commercial and public sectors, creating opportunities for organisations in the UK and internationally to work with us to develop and test innovative solutions.
At a time when water is becoming an increasingly valuable resource, we're working with Innovate UK Business Connect to seek partners to explore new ways of reducing water loss and improving resilience across its network. The challenge goes beyond replacing ageing lock gates. Much of the canal system was constructed around 250 years ago using clay-lined channels, meaning water can be lost through seepage and leakage, as well as evaporation and operational use. We're looking for innovative approaches, technologies and materials that can help better understand, monitor and reduce these losses while protecting the reliability of the network.
Caring for more than 2,000 miles of canals and navigable rivers, over 70 reservoirs, and more than 10,000 principal assets, we believe innovation will be essential in helping waterways respond to climate change, ageing infrastructure, growing demands on water and increasing expectations from communities and customers.
The prospectus also explores how Britain's canals could further support wider efforts to improve national water resilience. One current example is the Grand Union Canal Transfer project, a partnership between us, Severn Trent and Affinity Water. The scheme will transfer treated recycled water from the West Midlands into the canal network before it is abstracted further south, treated to drinking water standards and supplied to customers in the South East.
The launch is an open invitation to organisations that want to partner with us and builds on a growing programme of innovation that is already under way on canals, rivers and reservoirs across the country.
Using technology
Drone technology is now being used to inspect bridges, aqueducts, weirs and embankments, improving the quality of asset information while reducing the need for colleagues to work at height and in other potentially hazardous environments. In addition, we're exploring the use of thermal imaging and other sensing technologies to identify leakage, support environmental monitoring and improve understanding of asset condition.
We're also working with partners to decarbonise its operational fleet. A current project is trialling the conversion of one of its workboats to battery-electric propulsion, helping assess how low-carbon technologies could support future maintenance and construction activities.
Innovation is helping unlock new uses for the waterways themselves. In Birmingham, The Mailbox development uses water from the adjacent canal as part of a low-carbon cooling system, demonstrating how thermal energy stored in canal water can help heat and cool modern buildings while reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions. we believe similar opportunities could help towns and cities adapt to climate change while unlocking additional value from the canal network.
Increasing pressure on water rescources
Campbell Robb, our chief executive, said: “Originally built to move the goods that powered the Industrial Revolution, today it is the water within the canal network that is becoming the most important commodity, alongside its other benefits such as keeping boats moving, supporting wildlife, improving wellbeing, and contributing to local economies.
“As this summer has demonstrated, climate change and drought are placing increasing pressure on our water resources. Our canals are already part of the nation's water infrastructure, but we believe they can do even more. We need to find new ways to protect the water within our network, reduce losses, improve resilience and explore how canals can contribute further to the UK's future water security.
“What is exciting is that our waterways can now play a role that their original engineers could never have imagined. From helping move water between regions, to creating wildlife corridors, enabling low-carbon heating and cooling, and supporting healthier communities, our canal network has enormous potential.
“Through this prospectus we're inviting innovators, researchers, businesses and investors to work with us to turn that potential into reality.”
The nine innovation opportunities outlined in the prospectus span infrastructure resilience, construction efficiency, public and workforce safety, boating, economic growth, climate adaptation, decarbonisation and biodiversity recovery. Together they aim to encourage new research partnerships, technology trials, pilot projects and investment opportunities that can help secure the future of Britain's waterways while delivering benefits for people, places and nature.
