I
Ian Cloke
Guest
A Leak from a Severn Trent pumping station caused the death of more than 50 fish in Lydney.The Environment Agency had to respond immediately when the fish were found suffocating in Lydney canal this week.
The leak of organic waste happened near the ring road, where it is thought to have entered the River Lyd before flowing into the canal.
The agency is in talks with Severn Trent and may take action against the company to recover the costs of work and to pay for the canal to be restocked.
The agency worked for two days round the clock using pumps and hydrogen peroxide to restore oxygen levels in the water.
It said without such robust action not a single fish would be left living in the canal. At least 50 large fish - including carp, eel and roach - died, but it is impossible to estimate the numbers of smaller fish.
Charles Crundwell, who is the agency's senior technical specialist for fisheries in the Midlands, said: "It was classed as a category one, which is for the worst incidents, so it was big fish kill.
"We would have lost every fish if action had not been taken.
"If the waters are left as they are now it would be between five to 10 years before stocks returned to normal."
A spokesman for Severn Trent confirmed the company had a problem with its pumping station at Lakeside Avenue, in East March, on November 14.
"It stopped it pumping sewage and it spilt into the River Lyd and obviously did cause a pollution incident," he said. "We have been working with the Environment Agency to minimise the incident, but some fish were killed. We have been served a formal sample notice and there may well be a fine."
Roger Byett, from the Forest Tackle shop in High Street, said the incident would affect his business.
He said: "I sell day tickets for the fishing, so I will lose money from that and also will lose money from having fewer anglers spending money in the shop. There is a really gloomy spirit among anglers. It is a big loss - a real blow for the town."
Dave Walker, of Lydney Angling Club, said: "We all feel devastated. It is 30 years of work down the drain. We had been working hard to stock it with fish in consultation with the Environment Agency.
"I have spoken to people fishing who say they haven't had a single bite in three-and-a-half hours and you can see dead fish on the bottom."
The leak of organic waste happened near the ring road, where it is thought to have entered the River Lyd before flowing into the canal.
The agency is in talks with Severn Trent and may take action against the company to recover the costs of work and to pay for the canal to be restocked.
The agency worked for two days round the clock using pumps and hydrogen peroxide to restore oxygen levels in the water.
It said without such robust action not a single fish would be left living in the canal. At least 50 large fish - including carp, eel and roach - died, but it is impossible to estimate the numbers of smaller fish.
Charles Crundwell, who is the agency's senior technical specialist for fisheries in the Midlands, said: "It was classed as a category one, which is for the worst incidents, so it was big fish kill.
"We would have lost every fish if action had not been taken.
"If the waters are left as they are now it would be between five to 10 years before stocks returned to normal."
A spokesman for Severn Trent confirmed the company had a problem with its pumping station at Lakeside Avenue, in East March, on November 14.
"It stopped it pumping sewage and it spilt into the River Lyd and obviously did cause a pollution incident," he said. "We have been working with the Environment Agency to minimise the incident, but some fish were killed. We have been served a formal sample notice and there may well be a fine."
Roger Byett, from the Forest Tackle shop in High Street, said the incident would affect his business.
He said: "I sell day tickets for the fishing, so I will lose money from that and also will lose money from having fewer anglers spending money in the shop. There is a really gloomy spirit among anglers. It is a big loss - a real blow for the town."
Dave Walker, of Lydney Angling Club, said: "We all feel devastated. It is 30 years of work down the drain. We had been working hard to stock it with fish in consultation with the Environment Agency.
"I have spoken to people fishing who say they haven't had a single bite in three-and-a-half hours and you can see dead fish on the bottom."