'British Waterways' is a government body sponsored by the
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and the
Scottish Executive in the
United Kingdom. It is the navigation authority for the vast majority of the
inland waterways in the UK. It was founded in
1963 to assume control of the inland waterways assets of the
British Transport Commission, which was itself set up on nationalisation in
1947. Half of the United Kingdom population lives within five miles of one of British Waterways' canals or rivers.
British Waterways manages and cares for over 2000 miles (3219 km) of
canals,
rivers,
docks, buildings, structures and
landscapes. This includes 2800 listed structures, more than 130
Scheduled Ancient Monuments, more than 800 designated areas, as well as more than 100
Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs). It maintains a museum of its history within the
National Waterways Museum at
Gloucester.
See also
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History of the British canal system
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Crick Boat Show
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Continuous cruiser
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Narrowboat
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UK topics
External links
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British Waterways website - corporate information, document downloads, licencing, ''Waterfront'' magazine
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Waterscape.com - British Waterways leisure website - wildlife, cycling, walking, boating, maps
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Association of Inland Navigation Authorities (AINA)
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Tales of the River Severn