ENVIRONMENT Agency officers who prevented a spillage of red diesel devastating a Buckinghamshire river want residents to help find the culprit.
An orange discolouration was first noticed by residents in Aylesbury Vale as the pollutant flowed into a ditch in the north of the village. Specialist agency officers discovered the pollutant was a red-tinted fuel oil and had entered the River Ray. The team averted disaster by stopping several hundred litres of the spill from entering the nearby river using booms and by tankering away the oil.
Agency officials appealed for information on the origin of the leak and all local properties that are thought to store red diesel were checked.
Jo Wines, environment manager team leader, said: “This incident had the potential to seriously pollute the river and cause a great deal of environmental damage. We urgently need to trace the source of the leak as soon as possible to prevent any further risk of pollution.”
In an appeal to residents, Wines added: “I urge anyone who may have any information on where the diesel is coming from to contact us immediately so we can stop it posing any further threat to the local environment.”
