Wildlife reserve residents foaming about pollution

Fish, duck and other wildlife have been found dead at a massive pollution site outside Manchester.

The source has been isolated, and is an outflow pipe from a detergent factory near Middleton on the River Irk.

Environment Agency inspectors have ensured that the outflow from the pipe is now diverted into a containment vehicle and are satisfied that no more detergent pollution will enter the waterway, and a permanent block will soon be in place.

Residents in the area woke to a bizarre sight, as a wall of white detergent foam the width of a football pitch and over 10ft high in places, had appeared in a bend of the river overnight.

At first glance it appeared comical but the disastrous effects on local wildlife soon became apparent.

Environment Agency inspectors encountered numbers of dead fish species and ducks when assessing how far downstream the spill had spread.

There is a large wildlife reserve adjacent to the site of the bend where the detergent “wall” has sprung up.

Management of the factory responsible for the pollution are unable to identify the actual pollutant, and are only able to state it could be either washing detergent or bleach.

They also stated that it was not the result of a direct spill from their factory but a leakage escape from some subsoil pipes or drains.