The Wooden Trough outfall at Trebanos.

The wooden trough that took water from the Old Pump House next to Pont John Bridge in Clydach into the tunnel next to the Clydach Aqueduct was moved in the 1960s to north of Upper Trebanos Lock where it was used to take excess water from the old Darren Colliery. John Hutchings, the then Waterways Manager of the Swansea Canal, oversaw its installation in Trebanos after the Pump House was demolished. While the Darren Colliery was working, the trough bridged the canal and emptied the excess water into the River Tawe.  Now, the last remaining part of that wooden trough feeds water directly into the canal. However, the trough has been leaking for some time causing flooding in the neighbouring gardens. The Canal and River Trust asked us to assist in repairing it. the solution was to insert a blue plastic half pipe on top of the wood and then sand bag the areas below the outfall. Above you can see Hywel examaning the finished work.

The Bird Boxes which the Pupils of Pen Y Bryn School erected  in our new Nature Reserve with the assistance of our Education Officer, John Donovan, and our Bird Box Officer, Alan Williams,  some two months ago, have been successful. Two pairs of nesting blue tits have taken up residence. Everyone is delighted at the news and the pupils  returned to the Park to see for themselves.

Cheon Pyo Lee, our Artist in Residence on the Swansea Canal from November 2015 to June 2016, has completed two works inspired by his time with us. These  will be on display at an exhibition in Newtown in May 2017. Cheon was one of several artists who were sponsored by Glandwr Cymru, ADDO and the Welsh Arts Council to stay at various canals in Wales and  create imaginative Canal-centred works of art. We will be seeing one of  Cheon’s works before its dispatch to Newtown.  Though Cheon is now based in New York we have happy memories of his time with us at our Tuesday Work parties. We wish him every success in his future career as a contemporary artist.

Cheon Pyo Lee

BIrd Boxes in Coed Gwilym Park.