River Irwell at Townsend Fold and obviously at Ewood Bridge as I walked down.. was full of diesel this lunchtime. And lots of it. You could smell and even taste it in the air, it was so strong! EA informed but prob not much they can do anyway now.. By the time I had walked back up to TF it looked to be running clear again but it wasnt. If you touched any stones on the waters edge large plumes of diesel were released into the water.. No doubt its meandering its way towards Manchester causing devastation as it goes!!!
A Dipper near K Steels looked to be suffering already.
stuff seen ...
2 singing Chiffchaff. 1 at K Steels, 1 at EBSW.
no hirundines at EBSW.
100+ Jackdaw, 50+ C Crow, 20 BH Gull EBSW.
no Kingfishers seen despite searching.
pr Dipper at Irwell Vale
clolour-ringed Grey Wag red BX still breeding at Lumb viaduct.
-- Edited by C Bel on Saturday 27th of March 2021 05:07:56 PM
-- Edited by C Bel on Saturday 27th of March 2021 08:15:04 PM
After Craig rang me yesterday I walked the river from Stubbins to Lumb Vale and saw no physical sign of the Diesel spill but you could smell it in the breeze, all the usual bird species were on territory, I checked my local pair of Dippers at 17:30 hrs and they were still on the river.
Walked down the river first light this morning, with heavy rain falling most of the night the river has gone from normal spring level to over half a meter up and running chocolate brown, two pair of Grey Wagtail feeding on bank side vegetation were the only birds seen, No Dippers, but thats not unusual in these conditions, presumably the Diesel has been washed down stream.
Time will tell over the coming drier warm spell as we should see invertebrates hatching if they have survived the pollution and the original four pair of Dippers breeding.
Hopefully the beauty (if there is one!) of it being diesel is that it seemed to all be on the surface of the water.. Saying that it was certainly present under every waterside rock I moved.. Maybe its perfect that we have got some heavy rain overnight to get rid of the rest.
