A POTENTIAL sewage leak into Deepdale Beck, in Startforth, is under investigation by the Environment Agency.
The leak came from an outlet pipe along the beck’s bank near Deerbolt Prison and is believed to have happened earlier in the year.
An Environment Agency spokesperson said it was informed about the leak by a dale conservation group on Tuesday, February 26.
He added that it was difficult to assess to impact of any pollution that might have been caused because of the time that had past since the incident occurred.
The spokesperson said: “An Environment Agency officer was informed by members of a local conservation group about a possible sewage discharge into Deepdale Beck at Startforth, which is suggested to have happened earlier in the year.
“We would urge anyone who is aware of pollution in our waterways to contact us immediately by reporting the matter to the Environment Agency’s incident hotline on 0800 807060, so that we can investigate”
“We’re now investigating to determine the extent of any environmental pollution and what may have caused it so that appropriate action can be taken.”
A spokesman from Northumbrian Water said: “Our team has visited Deepdale Beck and we can confirm that the sewage litter has been cleaned up.
“In-line with standard practice for these types of incidents, we are liaising closely with the Environment Agency while we investigate it
further.
“The environment is at the heart of everything we do and we take reports of pollution very seriously to ensure any issues can be dealt with as a priority, minimising the impact to the environment and the risk of it happening again.”
