The iconic Rickmansworth Festival, which has been a feature of the local community for the last 30 years, will not take place in 2024, the organisers have announced.
The news comes in the wake of the Three Rivers District Council recent implementation of an Asbestos Management Plan for the Aquadrome.
This means the Aquadrome is a now a no-dig zone, meaning that penetrating the ground on the site is prohibited.
MyLocalNews spoke to Dr David Montague, festival director and chairman of the Rickmansworth Waterways Trust, to hear more.
A Three Rivers District Council spokesperson said: “The council has been eager to continue working with the organisers of the Rickmansworth Festival to ensure this popular local event can go ahead, but public safety must always be our first concern. Owing to the known presence of asbestos and the update of our Asbestos Management Plan, the Aquadrome has had to be designated a no dig zone. As such, extra consideration would need to be given to the equipment used for the festival so that nothing is staked into the ground which has the potential to disturb any asbestos buried underground. There would also be additional post-event cleaning requirements, which event organisers would need to budget for. The council met festival organisers in December and offered advice and additional support, including funding for the current year, but any decisions on the future of the festival are and remain those of its organisers. It is possible for the Rickmansworth Festival to go ahead with appropriate mitigation and the Aquadrome remains a safe environment for general day to day use.”
Video credit: Les Mead
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