Chemical pollution detected in canal

Toxic pollution that has killed thousands of fish along a Wolverhampton canal has been detected in north Shropshire, it was revealed today.

Pollution which started from a Severn Trent sewage plant is now being detected in parts of the canal around the Market Drayton area, although it is no longer strong enough to kill any fish after being diluted.

The news comes after anglers finished compiling a dossier of evidence about the chemical spillage along the Shropshire Union and Staffordshire & Worcestershire canals.

They will be handing the dossier over to Fish Legal, which fights against water pollution across the country.

It could lead to legal action being taken against Severn Trent Water, which has already confirmed the source of the problem was its Barnhurst sewage plant near Autherley Junction in Wolverhampton. Ammonia is reported to have been discharged into the canal network after a leakage.

The contamination began on April 18 and since then thousands of dead fish have been taken from the canals.

An Environment Agency investigation is under way.

Gill Dickinson, spokeswoman for Severn Trent, said: "We are continuing to investigate this regrettable incident. We understand that some levels of ammonia have been detected in Market Drayton, but that there have been no reports of any adverse impact on fish."