The material located on the water surface and lower parts of the
adjacent banks is collected using a purpose built vessel known as the
‘Water Witch’.
The front of the
vessel has a mesh scoop to remove the litter and debris from the
water/bank surface. Other attachments can also be added such as a log
grapple. The Water Witch is capable of collecting and removing many
types of debris, including tyres, plastic bottles, oil drums,
household furniture, telegraph poles, cars and even dead animals.
The material
deposited higher up the river banks is removed using land based
resources. These resources are not provided directly by the Harbour
Authority but indirectly under a Service Level Agreement with Cardiff
County Council’s Waste Management Service Area. However, where
possible clean and bulky timber is salvaged and used as Biomass fuel
The majority of the
material collected is removed to a licensed landfill
site. Special disposal arrangements are in place for particular types
of material such as animal carcasses, gas bottles, syringes and tyres.
The amount of
material collected and removed from Cardiff Bay is highly variable and
dependent upon weather conditions. In 2005, approximately 1012 tonne
of debris was removed from the Bay with the majority of the waste
being collected in the winter period.
Inspections of the
water and adjacent river banks are regularly made to ensure the
required standards of cleanliness are achieved.
In order to protect
the Cardiff Bay Wetlands area, a boom of approximate length 370m was
installed immediately in front the wetlands area. A boom has
also been installed partially across the River Taff adjacent to Hamadryad
Park with the aim of preventing a significant amount of litter and
debris from entering the Bay. It is expected that this will result in significant efficiency improvements in the collection
of litter and debris. |
