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Hundreds Of Fish Killed By Pollution In UK Lake

Hundreds Of Fish Killed By Pollution In UK Lake

It's not clear what caused the pollution, but it caused hundreds of fish in the lake and surrounding areas to die

Tom Wood

Tom Wood

Parents have been asked to keep their children away from a lake in the North West of England after hundreds of fish died there and in streams around it.

An urgent investigation has been launched to discover what exactly it was that killed off the aquatic life at a lake in Newton-le-Willows, near to St Helens in Merseyside.

However, locals have been warned to keep their kids away from the polluted water, which has been covered with an unusual layer of foam.

Dead fish have been found at Newton Lake in Willow Park, as well as in surrounding streams in Widnes, Warrington, and Cheshire.

It's not immediately clear what was responsible for the animals' death, although the authorities have claimed that the source was found.

Twitter/Sev Gomez-Aspron

Local councillor Seve Gomez-Aspron said that he'd 'never seen anything like it' before but expressed concerns for wildlife beyond the creatures that live in the lake.

Gomez-Aspron said: "My real concern is that the chemical may bio-accumulate in the surrounding bird of prey community.

"As a semi-rural area, this could have a devastating impact on our local ecosystem."

Twitter/Sev Gomez-Aspron

The Environment Agency North West said that an investigation had been launched, and they described the incident as a 'serious fish kill' on Twitter.

They praised the actions of members of the local community who reported the pollution to their attention as soon as they spotted that the unusual froth had formed on the lake.

They tweeted: "We are responding to a serious fish kill at Newton-Le-Willows, St Helens.

"Our officers & St Helens Council are investigating the cause & taking action to avoid any further fish deaths."


The Environment Agency also stated that they had identified and stopped the cause of the pollution, but did not name what the source was.

However, St Helens Borough Council said that they believe the cause of the pollution to have originated in the Wigan area, according to a report in the St Helens Reporter.

As well as keeping children away from the water - which is probably good advice at any time - locals were also warned to keep pets away from the lake.

Featured Image Credit: Twitter/Sev Gomez-Aspron

Topics: Environment, UK News, Weird, Animals