Leeds and Liverpool canal is known as the longest canal built-in history in the United Kingdoms. The length of the canal is 127 miles (204km), consist of a total of 91 locks on the mainline of the canal, without counting the locks on its five branches. The construction of the canal took nearly 50 years and eventually opened in 1816. The canal departs from Liverpool and then travels through East Lancashire before passing through Pennine on the outskirts of the Yorkshire Dales before arriving in Leeds. The Leeds & Liverpool Canal is a wide canal that allows Yorkshire keels to pass across the Pennines. Yorkshire merchants were desperate to get lime and limestone from the Craven District to fertilize agricultural land and make cement to expand the size and height of weaving structures. The canal also allowed access to export channels to African and American markets via Liverpool, as well as a coal supply from Wigan to Liverpool.
There are five branches: Rufford Branch which approximately 7.25 miles, runs to the river Douglas Navigation. The longest branch which is the Leigh Branch stretch for 7.5 miles, runs to the Leigh Branch of the Bridgewater canal. The Springs Branch is 0.5 miles, located in Skipton. Last but not least is the Stanley Docks Branch with a length of only 0.3 miles but it has 4 locks and runs to the river mercy via the Liverpool link. There was another canal branch called Walton Summit Branch, but it is now closed and filled in no longer provides services.
This more than 200 years old canal in the UK started its historic mission in 1770, by 1777 the canal was first open from Leeds to Gargrave and from Liverpool to Parbold. During the period, the finical aspect run into some problems, the project ran out of money and the construction had to stop until 1790. After enough money was found to complete the brach, the route was then altered to take in the growing industrial towns of East Lancashire but it was not until 1816 that the last section between Wigan and Johnson’s Hillock, near Chorley, was finished, finally creating a trans-Pennine link between the two great cities. The canal’s engineering differs significantly from that of other Trans-Pennine canals. The majority of the locks are grouped, with extensive level stretches between them. Wherever feasible, tunnels and cuts are avoided, with the canal following the contours around bends and loops. The distance between locations by the canal is double the shortest travel in some portions. Between Leeds and Bingley, the oldest locks are frequently placed together to form staircases of two or three locks. The five-story lock staircase at Bingley is the canal’s most impressive feature.
In old days, the canal was major used to carried cotton, coal, wool, and limestone, etc through the sharply growing industrial cities between Lancashire and Yorkshire. Ever since the First world war, road traffic, and railways traffic increase, the traditional canal side industries decreased, then by the end of the second world war, the number of commodities transported between these regions had declined and narrowly escaped closure in the 1970s. Despite that, the Leeds & Liverpool canal still serves as a heaven place for wild lives, a beautiful place for tourism after centuries.
According to the Leeds and Liverpool canal society president Mike Clarke, the opening of the Leeds and Liverpool canal had improved and encouraged the development of the textile industries in Lancashire and West Yorkshire. For over decades, they have supported Britain’s economic development, they deserve to be called the most historically significant canal in the country. On the Leeds and Liverpool canals boast up to 14 feet wide and 62 feet long can sail between Wigan and Leeds, with 72 feet long boats able to sail between Leigh, Wigan, and Liverpool. The depth of the water was originally above five feet but because of silting and people throwing rubbish into the canal, the shallowest part of the canal today measured to be only 3 feet deep.
With the opening of the Ribble Link in 2002, investment in the canal has continued into the 21st century. The Leeds & Liverpool Canal and the Lancaster Canal are going to be connected and create another short waterway. In 2009, the 1.4-mile Liverpool Canal Link opened which connects the Leeds and Liverpool canal to the city’s South Docks, this link cost about £22 million, the connection runs directly through the center of Liverpool to the Royal Albert Dock.
Discussion
Up until this point, we have looked total 4 of massive water projects that either brought good or bad to the country. From the Panama Canal built that benefits the world trade to the Leeds & Liverpool canal that benefits the country, we see the common things these waterways all share, they provide alternatives for the road traffic, they support cargos transit that is much more efficient at a less expense. Compare to much on-road traffic, canals and waterways are more environmentally benign. However, the construction of these water projects could be detrimental. For example, during the construction of the Panama Canal, the spread of Malaria killed thousands of people; the construction damaged the quality of water, thousands of residents in North China complained that the water is too dirty to drink; since the day the Suez Canal opened, the hundreds of new invasive species post a threat on many indigenous people and animal species, leads to a tourism decline. Canals are important to us because they serve as an oasis to many wild animals, they can solve the problem of water scarcity, provide water for domestic, industry, and agriculture. They can also provide a great passkey for tons of cargo to be transported between nations and nations, enhance global trade. However, we cannot forget how building a canal can cause damage to our environment. It is not wrong to build canals in regions especially when it can serve people in any good ways, but also it is crucial to think about the consequence, some aspect of nature is unrecoverable, we can build a canal as long as we are within the limit.
Source
https://www.britishcanoeing.org.uk/regions/yorkshire/news/leeds-liverpool-canal-200-year-anniversary