CCTV installed at famous North Wales slate quarry after trespass incidents

North Wales Live

30-06-2025

CCTV has been installed at a famous quarry after trespassing incidents. Vivian Quarry, on the edge of Eryri (Snowdonia) is part of the vast Dinorwig slate complex, once the world's second largest slate mine.
Since the Gwynedd slate quarry closed in 1960, rain and underwater springs have filled it 19 metres deep, covering old buildings and mining equipment.
The site is now an extraordinary time capsule for an industry that once roofed the world and there is dive attraction there run by Scuba Scape.
But they have hit out at people entering the site for "illegal" fishing. This has seen them install CCTV at various locations with a warning they will pursue prosecutions of those caught.
The company said: "We've been made aware of illegal fishing and theft of our fish from the quarry. Not only that but we've now found three fish dead underwater with hooks in their mouths.
"Fishing at Vivian is prohibited as is trespassing, and you are committing not only a crime but also a civil offense in which we fully intend to prosecute individuals found not only breaking into the quarry but also pursuing criminal prosecution for fishing on private land.
"We have now installed a number of CCTV cameras ran by mains and solar throughout the site but mainly focusing on the gates and around the area where the road goes past the quarry, this is backed up with AI recognition and also a direct track to the security firm.
"This behaviour will not be tolerated and we will 100% pursue all avenues in catching these people."
Scuba Scape are turning the site - situated near the Llanberis Lake Railway station and the National Slate Museum - into an adventure hub.
An escape room concept, Scuba Escape, was first launched at the quarry in 2021 during the pandemic. Pitched at skilled scuba divers, this featured six, 240-minute games which tested diving skills such as buoyancy and navigation.
They are developing a new attraction will offer an entirely different means of descending into the quarry's depths, obviating the need for specialised scuba diver training – though the partners are staying tight-lipped about the technology involved. The company want to showcase the heritage of the site alongside providing exciting adventures.