20 tons of scrap metal pulled from Black Country canal

Volunteers worked tirelessly to clean out the rubbish from stretches of the Birmingham Canal Navigations.

The clean-up saw more than 70 people from across the country help make the waterways a safer and cleaner place.

Volunteers from the Waterway Recovery Group and Inland Waterways Association worked almost 16 hours over two days on Saturday and Sunday.

They worked in Wednesfield on the Wyrley and Essington Canal to Horseley Fields Junction up to Wolverhampton locks and then down to the Bradley Arm up to the workshop.

Jenny Black, 34, volunteer coordinator for the Waterway Recovery Group and Inland Waterways Association, based in Chesham, said: "The clean-up went really well.

"The volunteers took out 20 tons of scrap metal and rubbish and there were over 70 people taking part from the group.

"Canal enthusiasts come from all over – we have people from London, Manchester and local people as well.

"We run week-long canal restoration parties across the country – sometimes 28 to 30 week projects but we're active most weekends.

"You usually find loads of tyres, shopping trolleys, a load of fence panels. We even found part of a VW car. I don't think there was anything particularly interesting but in the past we've found safes and motorbikes."

The Birmingham Canal Navigations Society, Coombeswood Canal Trust and Friends of Tipton Cut were among the groups taking part.

In 2016, more than 70 volunteers spent two days removing an estimated 44 tons of rubbish from Walsall Canal.

Their work aims to keep the network passable for boats.