Grants up for grabs for sustainable Broads projects

Grants totalling almost £267,900 have been given to 31 wide ranging projects from new boats for sailing clubs to recycling bicycles by the Broads Authority’s Sustainable Development Fund over the past financial year.

A £4,479 grant was given to Colman Infant School to create a garden where children now grow their own vegetables, share the experience with their parents and take them home to eat. At the other end of the scale a £7,700 grant aided the development of a tidal electricity generator for use in estuaries.

Boating activities have been well supported with over £10,000 going towards the replacement of a Topper sailing dinghy fleet for the Norfolk Schools Sailing Association, £5,000 towards the cost of four Wayfarers at Norfolk Broads Yacht Club and £18,500 towards a new quay heading and slipway with disabled access, including a lift, for Norwich 1st Sea Scouts, one of the oldest troops in the country.

The fund contributed £20,000 towards a mooring pontoon at Cantley Staithe and £20,000 towards a quay heading and slipway for a new rowing and canoeing centre at Whitlingham.

Recently a grant of £4,500 was approved for a 32 ft long floating pontoon with a ramp at Beccles Quay so that people with walking difficulties and wheelchair users can easily get on their boats. It will provide an accessible mooring for the Waveney Stardust, which gives trips for disabled people, and can moor nine boats stern end on. Moorings can be booked by ringing the harbourmaster on 01502 712225. Rowing boats will be hired from the pontoon from next season.

On land a £7,500 grant has been given to a community bicycle recycling project in Norwich which encourages people to get on two wheels. Wednesday workshops help people refurbish old and unwanted bicycles while developing life skills. Every two weeks there are lessons in custom building bikes from scratch, cycle maintenance and guided cycle rides.

A £9,000 grant has been awarded to Fairhaven Woodland and Water Garden for a bird hide designed for wheel chair users at the end of a boardwalk overlooking South Walsham Inner Broad. The hide, which should be erected ready for winter bird watching will feature windows at wheelchair height, audio interpretation and wildlife cams which will relay activity in bird boxes to a television screen in the tea room.

Although the government fund was reduced in this financial year to £150,000 there is still money in the pot for projects which involve young people, best practice, well being, health and education.

Alphacraft 42

I took a trip to Royalls & Sons in Wroxham today to Survey their Alphacraft 42, 'Royal Continental'. The longest version of this design still with only the aft cabin lengthened. It is normally outfitted as a six/seven berth, but they do get as high as nine berth (and there is one luxury class at only four berth). There is a lot of scope for variety in the internal layout. Production years were: 1986-94.

Royalls are a small family run business established since 1950, situated in the heart of the Norfolk Broads at Hoveton/Wroxham. They have been providing visitors to the Norfolk Broads, first class holidays for over 50 years! They combine a reputation for boats of high standard and quality. All of their boats are fitted out to the highest standard, with top quality equipment and immaculate presentation. They hire boats between March and mid-November.

The guys at Royalls winching her back towards the water for relaunching...

Even a bath!!

Fairline Phantom 1976

Today’s mission was to carry out a full Pre-purchase Survey on this Phantom at Woods Dyke Boat Yard in Horning. The acting Broker was Norfolk Yacht Agency.

 Fairline Boats is based at Oundle and has long been a manufacturer of luxury craft. They now concentrate mainly on craft too large for the Broads, but previously Fairline produced a number of popular smaller craft, many of which are still to be found on the Broads.

Although it doesn’t look quite so radical as the original Fairline Fury, the Fairline 32 Phantom sports a similar, low profile flying bridge, well forward and recessed into the superstructure; again it’s the only helm resulting in a spacious and uncluttered interior. The boat was designed by John Bennett. Fairline launched the Phantom in 1974 and built 310 of them up to 1982.

Roger Hodds lifting her out for an inspection of the bottom and a check of the stern drives

Low profile flying bridge, well forward and recessed into the superstructure



This a newer Phantom being prepared for sale at Norfolk Yacht Agency... a big change in hull shape



Exploring the Broads past and future

Bungay High school pupils dug into the origins of the Broads to help launch a plan that sets out a 20 year vision for the future on Suffolk Wildlife Trust’s Carlton Marshes. Broads Authority chairman Dr Stephen Johnson launched Broads Plan 2011, the key strategic management plan for the area, alongside students studying environmental conservation at Bungay High School who travelled 6,000 years back in time to explore its past. They dug peat cores from six metres underground which showed them how the landscape of the Broads was formed.

The Broads Plan sets out a ‘Vision for the Broads to 2030’ together with long-term aims and short-term objectives. Over 600 organisations, groups and individuals with an interest in the Broads were invited to contribute to the plan, which is reviewed every five years. “From the peat cores the children were able to see a real example of how water levels have fluctuated in the Broads in response to climate change,” said Broads Authority Education Officer Nick Sanderson. “The peat that forms the Broads holds the key to both the past and the future. It preserves evidence of the historic habitats and vegetation of the area and locks in carbon from the atmosphere which contributes to global warming and climate change.” Helping residents and visitors to adapt to climate change and sea level rise, and leading the way towards a low carbon economy is central to the Broads Authority’s objectives.

It is one of three key priorities for the Broads Authority and its partners over the lifetime of this Broads Plan, alongside the sustainable management of the Broads landscape, biodiversity and navigation and encouraging local people and visitors to enjoy the Broads in a sustainable and caring way.

An electronic version of the Plan has been produced which will provide progress updates, links to relevant documents and partner websites and other supporting information. The e-Plan may be viewed at http://www.broads-plan.co.uk./

The Plan’s structure reflects the integrated and cross-cutting nature of the Broads Authority’s statutory functions, the multiple responsibilities of other agencies and bodies, and the wide variety of partnership working in the Broads area.

Ocean 30 Mk II Motor Cruiser

I was back down at Horning today inspecting this Motor Cruiser. Aquafibre moulded the hull and the superstructure of the Ocean 30 for other yards to fit out. This round bilge displacement cruiser was in production from 1966 to 1979... This example is the Mk II, adding a small single cabin to the right of the cockpit, producing a three-five berth. Over A 1000 ocean 30’s were built. Most can be found on rivers but the boats are quite cable of seagoing, at least in the twin engine versions.

Surveyors comments on electrical installations generally
It's advisable to run cables as high as possible in the boat to reduce the chance of heat or impact damage - at least 75mm (3ins) and ideally 125mm (5ins) away from any potential sources. Cable conduits can be the 'clip together' uPVC type, galvanised steel or wood. But whatever the type, they must be firmly fixed at around 900mm (3ft) intervals. To minimise the chance of sparks coming off a damaged cable and igniting nearby fuels, cables must be kept at least 30mm (2ins) away from fuel and gas pipes - unless the pipe or the cable is in a suitable conduit or duct.
To minimise the risk of damage to cables, and to allow a visual inspection of the installation, main circuits must be installed above bilge water level. Bilge water level can usually be determined by the presence of a 'tidemark', the position of the bilge pump or its inlet, or the level at which the float switch is set. All main circuits, other than starter circuits, must be protected by circuit breakers or fuses of the appropriate rating and of a suitable design. This means that the fuse or circuit breaker must have a rating which is lower than the current that would cause damage to the circuit. The safe operation of these devices must not be compromised by the use of thicker fuse wire or by using tape to keep the contacts closed. If your boat has a 240V supply it's strongly recommended that you fit a residual current device (RCD) to automatically disconnect the supply. This will prevent an earth leakage current flowing through a faulty appliance, and protects someone inadvertently touching a live circuit and getting an electric shock.

Thinking of Buying a Boat and Need Help? I will assist you to make an informed decision. Contact me for a detailed and comprehensive report at: steventruss1@aol.com