Campaigners stepping up fight for action to protect beloved south Essex Lake
The meeting comes as the Friends of Canvey Lake group relaunch their 'save Canvey Lake' poster campaign in an effort to raise awareness about what they see as the neglect and mismanagement of the treasured community asset.
Castle Point Council has said it remains committed to protecting the lake and that there is potential for investment if residents desire it.
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Alan Tibbit is the chairman of Save Canvey Lake and was one of those to meet with Castle Point's Conservative MP Dame Rebecca Harris earlier this week.
'It is refreshing to see that our MP agrees with us about dredging the lake and our aim is for a complete reset to 2010 levels,' he said – the group would like to see the condition of the lake restored to the quality it was at 15 years ago.
Campaign - Members of Friends of Canvey Lake met with Dame Rebecca earlier this week (Image: Martin England) 'This is now a risk to public health with botulism and algae, and with the recent hot weather, and shallow depths of water, the botulism and algae will only get worse over the coming months.
'Canvey Lake should be for Canvey people, and our councillors need to do something about the issues or let those that care about it take over the running of the lake.'
Determined - The campaigners have launched new posters as part of their mission (Image: Martin England) The residents' concerns around Canvey Lake stretch back years and have seen numerous campaigns launched to address its 'mismanagement'.
As part of their latest project, the group has distributed posters to businesses across the island in the hopes of raising awareness of the issues facing the lake.
After meeting the residents, Dame Rebecca said she understands the council to be working on the issue but believes it still needs dredging.
Beloved - Canvey Lake is a point of pride for residents (Image: Google Maps) Ian Butt, director of place and communities at Castle Point Council said: 'Canvey Lake is an important community asset managed by Canvey Island Town Council.
'The Borough Council will continue to work with the Town Council, residents and other stakeholders regarding the ongoing management and maintenance of the lake.
"Canvey Island has received a £20 million investment through the Government's Long-Term Plan for Towns Programme. If the community and residents choose to prioritise it, part of this funding could be allocated to improvements to the lake."
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