Call for council to be abolished over lake dispute

Dead fish previously had to be removed from Canvey Lake after issues with algal bloom

A petition calling for the abolition of a town council has been signed by almost 3,800 residents.

It came amid upset over ongoing health concerns surrounding Canvey Lake, on Canvey Island in Essex.

Documents show Castle Point Borough Council will discuss the concerns about Canvey Island Town Council during a meeting on Wednesday.

The town council and several of its councillors were contacted for comment by the BBC, but no response was received.

The petition, signed by 3,783 people, was handed to the borough council's chief executive in August.

Signatories wanted it to act as a "vote of no confidence" in the town council, meeting papers showed.

Castle Point Borough Council is not responsible for Canvey Island Town Council, meeting papers showed

Alan Tibbit, who chairs the Friends of Canvey Lake, said the town council had allowed the nature reserve to deteriorate into an "appalling state".

"At the moment, it is basically a three-inch deep cesspit," he told the BBC.

"It has botulism in it when the weather gets hot enough and [that is] very dangerous. We have blue-green algae every year."

Fish had to be taken out of the water and rehomed in 2023 after algal bloom deprived it of oxygen.

Mr Tibbit said the signatories felt the town council was no longer fit for purpose.

"Just on the lake alone, they have not done what they’re supposed to do," he added.

Residents previously crowd-funded two aerators to try to improve the water quality

A report by Castle Point's chief executive said two members of the public had contacted the council to say they had been asked to sign the petition to "get the lake done".

"But, when they asked what the petition was planning to do about the lake, they were told it was to get the town council to resign," the report added.

The report said 973 signatures could be declared void as a result of the issue, adding that 15 pages of signatures were headed "Save Canvey Lake".

If the signatures on those pages were removed, it would mean the petition did not meet the threshold of "sufficient local support", which was interpreted as 10% of Canvey's population, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The report also stated the borough council was not responsible for the town council.

It said any influence Castle Point could have had on the smaller authority would have been "reputational only" and that it could not have called a referendum on the matter.

The borough council would suggest a review of the town council during Wednesday evening's meeting, the report added.