COUNCILLORS have given their full support to taking on the ownership of the waterways at The Basins nature reserve in Wellington.

Members of Wellington Town Council’s environment committee met on January 21 where they debated whether to get into discussions about the possible transfer of ownership of the waterways running through the Green Corridor to Tonedale Mill, including the ponds at The Basins.

Mancraft Ltd own the historic Tonedale Mill site and the waterways that go through the Green Corridor.

The council’s chief executive Dave Farrow told councillors he was contacted by a Mancraft director at the beginning of January to say he would be willing to consider transferring the ownership of the waterways to the town council on the provision that the authority met any legal fees.

Mr Farrow said: “I’m not looking for a definite yay or nay from councillors at the moment, but just an approval to look more into it.”

The mayor, Cllr Janet Lloyd, said: “I think this is a good idea, but we need to keep our eyes open, how much is it going to cost?”

Mr Farrow said that the council had contacts who he felt would be happy to “come on board” with the expertise needed to steer the authority in the right direction.

“I’m confident we can get the expertise around the table from those who are passionate about this sort of thing and know the issues,”

The chief executive, in a report, added: “Bringing the waterways into our ownership would be a further step in the direction of the council being responsible for the whole of the Green Corridor area and is consistent with our strategy of bringing well-used public spaces under our control.”

But Mr Farrow warned: “With ownership comes responsibilities and costs both in terms of ongoing maintenance and liabilities arising from a likely lack of investment and ongoing maintenance in previous years.

“This is particularly relevant in relation to the need for the waterways to be properly maintained and possibly developed to mitigate the risk of flooding at, for example, Hilly Head and in Rockwell Green and on the Mill site itself.

“The current risks relate to not knowing what the immediate and ongoing costs and liabilities would be of taking ownership of the waterways.

“This would be mitigated by seeking specialist advice on likely ongoing maintenance costs, costs of addressing any shortfalls in previous maintenance regimes and costs of enhancing the waterways to promote biodiversity and mitigate against future flood risks before any final decision is made.”

But Cllr Sean Pringle-Kosikowsky said: “There might be risks involved in this, but I can only see the giant benefits of this – it’s a wonderful idea.”

Councillors voted unanimously in favour of Mr Farrow investigating further on assessing the risks and the possible costs involved and reporting back at a future meeting, although a final decision on whether to go-ahead with taking ownership of the waterways would have to be made by the full council.