SC(3) - AIW49

Sustainability Committee

Inquiry into access to inland water in Wales

As a paddler in Wales and the borders I would make the foloweing points:

In my sport I cause no harm to private property nor to the environment. Unfounded (but oft repeated) assertions that the passage of paddlers causes damage to spawning beds is wholly without evidence. In the rare cases where there are genuine environmental issues I am happy to adapt my activities to respond to them but they would need to be clearly communicated and confirmed by independent advisers rather than the riparian owners who are perceived as making up science to suit themselves.

In a few parts of Wales there is in my experience no objection from other river users to paddlers sharing in the enjoyment of the country's natural resources. In some areas this is emphatically not the case. The limited access which we enjoy in practice makes legislation essential.

Voluntary access agreements are not a solution. Decades of trying to negotiate agreements has left paddlers with a few crumbs thrown to the ground by the riparian owners and other interest groups. Access agreeemnts are not a sustainable way forward and if Canoe Wales attemted to negotiate such agreements they would be quite unable to gain suport for their position from paddlers across the country.

I contribute to the local economy in the areas I visit as do most other paddlers in my experience.

David Butler