Great Lakes nations maintain coast guard vessels in the Great Lakes. During settlement, the Great Lakes and its rivers were the only practical means of moving people and freight. Barges from middle North America were able to reach the Atlantic Ocean from the Great Lakes when the Welland canal opened in 1824 and the later Erie Canal opened in 1825. By 1848, with the opening of the Illinois and Michigan Canal at Chicago, direct access to the Mississippi River was possible from the lakes. With these two canals an all-inland water route was provided between New York City and New Orleans. The
Lagan Canal by the building of the M1 motorway along its route. There are proposals to restore the canal, to once again provide a navigable link between Belfast and Lough Neagh. Initially, a steering group was formed, with representatives from local councils, user groups and central government. The Lagan Canal Restoration Trust was a logical development of this group, and was formed as a company limited by guarantee in 2008 with representatives from the four councils which administer the areas through which the canal runs, and six other key partners, including the Northern Ireland Environment Agency, the Department for Culture, Arts and