A 60-tonne craft has started dredging a 2.2km stretch of water from Bow Locks on Bow Creek to the Waterworks River, adjacent to the site of the Aquatics Centre. The craft is expected to remove 30,000 tonnes of silt, gravel and rubble as well as tyres, shopping trolleys, timber and at least one motor car.

ODA Environment Manager Richard Jackson said: 'The Olympic Park is characterised by a series of waterways which act as green corridors running through the heart of the site. Currently, they are polluted, neglected and under-used, and have been treated as a dumping ground for everything from shopping trolleys to cars.

'This dredging programme is an important step in regenerating the waterways and will help improve water quality, creating better habitats for wildlife and plants.

The clearing and cleaning of the waterways will enable freight barges to carry construction materials in, and waste out, of the Park during the construction phase. A wharf is being constructed on the Waterworks River near the Aquatics Centre and will be used to receive freight loads for the Olympic Park contractors. Work began on the upper levels of the wharf this week and is due to be completed at the start of June.

Barges will then be able to travel into the Park by water via the new lock and water control structure, Three Mills Lock, at Prescott Channel. The £20m structure comprises twin water control gates, a 62m-long tidal lock, footbridge, lock control building, fish pass and fixed weir.

Richard Jackson added: 'This is a crucial part of our logistics strategy as we plan to use the waterways for the transport of construction materials into the Olympic Park, cutting down on the amount of lorries travelling on the roads.' 

Richard Rutter, Regeneration Manager, British Waterways said: 'Dredging the waterways of the silt and rubbish built up over the years in and around the Olympic Park is an essential part of the rejuvenation of east London’s rivers. The dredged aggregates will be recycled and reused in construction works in the Olympic Park.

'These dredging works will help us to realise our dream of seeing both commercial freight barges and leisure boats taking to the water once again in east London.'

Notes to editors:

Pictures and footage of dredging and sustainable transport deliveries can be obtained from the link below:

http://mm.gettyimages.com/mm/nicePath/locog?nav=pr124151537
 
The dredging programme will help open up the Bow Back Rivers and tributaries of the River Lee Navigation that run through the Park, enabling 350-tonne barges to carry materials in and out of the construction zone.

There are 8.35km of waterways in and around the Park. The Lea Valley waterways primarily run north to south through the heart of the Park and ultimately connect with the Thames.
 
The River Lea runs through the centre of the Park and is joined in the northern part of the Park by the Channelsea River, Henniker’s Ditch and two main areas of wetlands. In the south, the waterways include the Waterworks River, City Mill River, Bow Back River and the Old River Lea. The Park’s western-most boundary is the Lea Navigation – a historically important canal that links east London to west London. 

The Three Mills Lock and Water Control Structure at Prescott Channel is funded by British Waterways, Defra, the Department for Transport, London Thames Gateway Development Corporation, the Olympic Delivery Authority and Transport for London.  It will re-establish full navigation on the Bow Back Rivers for the first time in decades.  
 
British Waterways cares for and manages 100 miles of canals and rivers and 110 acres of docks in London.  As a not-for-dividend public corporation it works with a broad range of public, private and voluntary sector partners to unlock the potential of the inland waterways for the benefit of the millions who visit and care for them.
 
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For further information please contact the Olympic Delivery Authority Press Office on +44 (0)20 3 2012 700.

The construction of the venues and infrastructure of the London 2012 Games is funded by the National Lottery through the Olympic Lottery Distributor, The Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the Mayor of London and the London Development Agency.

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