'Eyesore' dried-up boating lake 'an embarrassment'

Heath Park Lake, a once-thriving boating lake, has dried up in parts

A dried-up boating lake has been described as an "eyesore" and an "embarrassment".

Hundreds of residents in Runcorn are calling on Halton Council to sort out the attraction in Heath Park.

The low-level of the once thriving attraction has prompted fears for wildlife.

Halton Council leader Mike Wharton said the authority was trying to "make progress as quickly as possible".

Speaking on BBC Radio Merseyside Mike Wharton said he wants the lake restored

Speaking on BBC Radio Merseyside's Hot Seat programme, Halton Council leader Mike Wharton said while lack of rainfall had had an effect on the water levels.

He said there was a significant amount of work to be done with United Utilities and the Environment Agency to get the water levels back up.

Cliff Arrowsmith, who runs the park's model boat club, said while there had been low water levels before there had been "nothing as bad as this".

"The sides are giving in and we can't sail a boat," he said.

"They just hit the bottom and it scrapes the bottoms off."

Halton Council said discussions with relevant agencies were ongoing

Council leader Wharton said the lake needed new pipes running into it, "but it's not that easy".

"United Utilities have told us that we need to run a pipe from a reservoir and as we know at the moment reservoirs are running low," he said.

He added it was "brilliant" that so many people cared about the lake and the authority was working "to restore it to the way it was".

"It's an embarrassment to me and that's why we want to make progress as quickly as possible."

A United Utilities spokesman said: "We had a productive meeting with Halton Council and are continuing to look at how we can support them with a long term solution to refilling the lake."