Vote on the Remediation of Cefn Mawr and Surrounding Villages

The Plas Kynaston Canal Group held a well-attended public meeting at the George Edwards Hall in Cefn Mawr on Friday 23rd November.

Three possible options for the future of Cefn Mawr and surrounding villages were presented in a power point presentation followed by questions and answer session.

The three options given were:
1. The ex-Monsanto site remains fenced off and chemically contaminated,
2. The site is capped and cheap housing is built on it along with a very limited extension of the PKC at the Trevor Basin.
3. The ex-Monsanto site and other areas around Cefn Mawr are cleaned up and the full extent of the Plas Kynaston Canal to the Queens Hotel in Cefn Mawr is reinstated once again.

The group have stated that their intention is “To clean up the environment around our community and put the canal back in to improve our economy since it has been shattered following the closure of the very plants we now have to clean up after! We will have to do this because no one else is going to do it for us, it is as simple as that. To do this we need as many people to vote for this as possible and so we ask you to vote for us to be able to do so.”

The public meeting was followed by a two day Exhibition Regarding the Remediation Programme and how it can be implemented to provide a positive input for the communities around the central section of the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct World Heritage Site corridor on the Llangollen Canal. This included a lot of research work into the origins of both Cefn Mawr & surrounding villages in the Industrial Revolution and how that knowledge could be used today for the Remediation Programme. Exhibits included many maps dating back to the mid 1700’s for both surface detail and cross sectional strata to show the rich mineral deposits below the currently contaminated site that could be realised as a part of the remediation programme. A genuine Thomas Telford Atlas complete with original copper plate drawings and up to date information such as the 300 page wild life impact assessment document and preliminary risk assessment appraisals for the site and programme were also on display. This was then supplemented by how the whole area could be developed as a primary tourist destination for marine, road and rail traffic, and the costs of such infrastructure improvements could be met from the remediation of Cefn Mawr programme.

The PKC group claim that they are gaining a significant majority in favour of the remediation programme with approximately 98% of people who attended their public meeting and voted being in support of this option. They are now hoping more people will vote on their website or by downloading, printing out and posting back voting forms.