CONCERNS have been raised about slurry being dumped into the River Weaver.

Campaign group Restore the Weaver has shared a video which appears to show farm workers washing thousands of litres of slurry into drains in Audlem.

It is feared this will now be washed into the nearby river, upstream of Northwich and Winsford.

Josh Niblett from Restore the Weaver said: “In short we are aware that circa 20,000 litres of slurry was accidentally dumped through the village.

“The clean-up of this was to rinse it into road drains which subsequently all lead to the river.

“This is all headed to the upper River Weaver.

“This is the second serious amount of slurry being dumped into the river in six months and has delayed a planned fish restock to help combat the damage caused last year.”

Reacting to the video, Cheshire West and Chester councillor for Leftwich Andrew Cooper said: “On the face of it, this looks absolutely outrageous.

“I hope the Environment Agency will investigate and take action.

“The River Weaver is incredibly important to Winsford and Northwich for fishing, water sports, as well as for businesses.

“We need to protect and defend it.”

In October 2023, the BBC reported how hundreds of dead fish were found following an 'incident of pollution' on riverside park areas in Nantwich.

As a result of this, the Environment Agency was planning to restock the river with thousands of fish.

However, as a result of this latest incident, this has been postponed.

“Our officers have been on site investigating a suspected pollution incident near the River Weaver, Nantwich,” said a spokesperson for the Environment Agency.

“After careful consideration, we are disappointed to cancel planned fish stocking of the River Weaver.

"We thank the members of the public who reported this incident to us and anyone who suspects pollution or other incidents in rivers and other waterways should contact the Environment Agency's 24-hour incident hotline immediately on 0800 807060."