Archive Council News

19 March 2008

Pontcysyllte a step nearer to World Heritage status

Pontcysyllte Aqueduct & Canal has overcome the first formal hurdle in its bid to become Wales third and newest World Heritage Site.

The nomination, which has been five years in the planning, has been accepted as one of a limited number of sites selected to reach the full UNESCO assessment phase for 2008.

This is the final and most demanding part of the evaluation procedure before a recommendation goes before the World Heritage Committee’s meeting in 2009. Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal follows the Roman Antonine Wall, which is the UK's nomination for this year. If both are successful, Pontcysyllte will not only become the 29th World Heritage inscripted site in the United Kingdom but also the first World Heritage site to cross the border between two countries in the UK - as its 11 mile length straddles both England and Wales.

A Site Nomination Summary booklet detailing the World Heritage submission is now available free of charge from Cadw, the Welsh Assembly Government’s historic environment service, and Wrexham County Borough Council.

One of Thomas Telford’s greatest civil engineering achievements, the breathtaking aqueduct, which dates from 1805, is a masterpiece constructed in the Industrial Revolution. The site nomination was led by Wrexham County Borough Council, British Waterways and the Royal Commission of the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales. Cadw also played a key role within the composition and financing of the submission and by ensuring the statutory protection of the monument by the scheduling and listing of the whole stretch of the canal along with its aqueducts, bridges and tunnels

The World Heritage nomination, if successful, is expected to deliver many economic opportunities for the area as well as world-wide recognition for the built heritage of north-east Wales.
Local communities along the stretch of the canal have also worked hard to support events and activities linked to the nomination of their canal and aqueduct and participated in a comprehensive twelve-week public consultation exercise.

Dr Dawn Roberts, Economic Development Manager, Wrexham County Borough Council, said, “A tremendous amount of work has gone into this nomination and we’re all absolutely delighted to have cleared the first techinical hurdle and await the next stage of the assessment process to hopefully deliver what we hope will be the third World Heritage site in Wales.”

Rhodri Glyn Thomas, Minister for Heritage, added, “The Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal is a magnificent example of Wales’s heritage in action. It continues to be one of the busiest stretches of canal in the UK with some 15,000 boat movements each year. I congratulate all those involved with preparing this nomination and for successfully getting this far. To give World Heritage status to this site will not only boost the economic and tourism potential of north-east Wales but also encourage the Aqueduct’s protection and conservation for future generations.”
Councillor Bob Dutton, OBE, Lead Member for Economic Prosperity, Asset Management and Culture at Wrexham County Borough Council said," We are very much aware that we have a duty of care to protect this exceptional masterpiece of civil engineering on behalf of the international community and we need to show the assessor that we have robust systems in place for its care and future management.

“If we are successful with this nomination the prestige accruing to the area, the County Borough and our neighbours will be considerable and should ensure that the structures, their conservation and the associated protected areas will have a part on the world stage of projects of international significance.”