Swansea Marina
Encyclopedia
Marina
A marina is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats.A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo from freighters....
located behind the Swansea barrage
Swansea barrage
The Swansea barrage was completed in 1992 creating a new marina at the mouth of the River Tawe extending the leisure boat facilities already being offered by the old South Dock....
at the mouth of the River Tawe
River Tawe
The River Tawe is a river in South Wales. It flows in a principally south-westerly direction for some from its source below Moel Feity in the Old Red Sandstone hills of the western Brecon Beacons to the Bristol Channel at Swansea. Its main tributaries are the right bank Upper and Lower Clydach...
in Swansea
Swansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
, south Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. Swansea Marina was awarded blue flag
Blue Flag beach
The Blue Flag is a certification by the Foundation for Environmental Education that a beach or marina meets its stringent standards.The Blue Flag is a trademark owned by FEE which is a not-for-profit, non-governmental organisation consisting of 65 organisations in 60 member countries in Europe,...
status in June 2005http://wales.gov.uk/news/archivepress/environmentpress/enviropress2005/707946/?lang=en and has been awarded five gold anchors by the Yacht Harbour Association.http://www.ewpdev.com/ami/news2.cfm?NewsID=899&archive=y&inputMM=10&inputYYYY=2005 There is a boat yard for building and servicing boats, and a few shops selling boating equipment.
Boating organisations based at Swansea Marina include Swansea Yacht and Sub Aqua club and the Maiden Voyage, which owns a 72 ft ocean racing yacht.http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/news/wales-news/2008/05/30/yacht-trips-aim-to-teach-teens-discipline-91466-20995754/
History
After many years of industrial decline in the Lower Swansea valleyLower Swansea valley
The Lower Swansea valley is the lower half of the valley of the River Tawe in south Wales. It runs from approximately the level of Clydach down to Swansea docks, where it opens into Swansea Bay and the Bristol Channel...
, the South Dock of the Swansea Docks
Swansea docks
Swansea Docks is the collective name for several docks in Swansea, Wales. The Swansea docks are located immediately south east of Swansea city centre. In the mid-19th century the port was exporting 60% of the world's copper from factories situated in the Tawe valley...
complex finally closed in 1969 leaving the area as an industrial wasteland. It was sold to the council for a nominal sum. Initially, a new relief road was proposed to take traffic away from the Oystermouth road. However, there was a government reorganisation in 1974 which decided on a new planning strategy. By 1975, a new planning strategy had been prepared which identified social and economic policy objectives with a new regeneration programme.
It took a further 5 years for land acquisition, clearance and infrastructure installation before redevelopment could commence. New sea defence works were installed, the dock basin had be cleared of debris and new moorings needed to be installed for the new marina. More efficient modern lock gates were fitted, along with a new swing bridge and the quay sides were paved to create a new public walkway around the dockside.
The yacht marina was opened in 1982 providing berths for 385 boats. It was not until 1992 that the Swansea barrage
Swansea barrage
The Swansea barrage was completed in 1992 creating a new marina at the mouth of the River Tawe extending the leisure boat facilities already being offered by the old South Dock....
was completed, transforming the River Tawe into long lake. Additional berths were constructed behind the barrage, just outside the marina proper, providing berthing for an additional 200 boats. A lock was incorporated into the barrage design to allow the passage of boats between the River Tawe system and the sea.