The Midlands Environment Agency team were recently called to land near Ellesmere to stop slurry leaking into a nearby brook.

The brook eventually flows into the River Dee and the team acted quickly to prevent the slurry having a impact on the river.

Martin Quine from the Environment Agency said: “Over the weekend, we worked very closely with a farmer from Ellesmere to successfully prevent a significant slurry pollution. A large amount of slurry from land spreading was running off the land and entering a small brook. We advised the farmer on how to contain the slurry, but it became evident that more needed to be done to prevent a serious pollution.

“As the risk of a substantial pollution was very high, our field services team went on scene and worked during the night on Saturday to contain the slurry. Slurry was then safely taken away by the farmer. Our actions were extremely successful and prevented a significant pollution which could have had very harmful effects on the local water environment.”

Farmers use slurry to fertilise their land and when used appropriately slurry has no impact on water quality however, if there has been a spill into the water it can be very harmful to fish and other animals.