Cause of oil spill in waterway being investigated

An oil spillage has appeared in a catchwater drain near Boultham Park in Lincoln

An oil spillage in a waterway near Lincoln is being investigated.

Pictures showing oil in the catchwater drain near Boultham Park appeared on social media earlier.

The City of Lincoln Council confirmed the Environment Agency (EA) and Anglian Water were looking into the issue.

In a statement, the authority said it was "distressed" to see the images and that it would "continue working with partners to help source the cause of the spill and prevent it happening again".

No injured wildlife

The statement continued: "Anglian Water is currently exploring manholes along the route of the outflow pipe that leads into the catchwater to see if they can find the source of the leak.

"Our site team has rushed to install booms [floating barriers] that prevent further oil entering... and have walked the length of the catchwater to see if there are any injured/distressed wildlife and none have been identified."

Tree planting and minor surfacing work has been taking place at the park and the council confirmed the EA was "satisfied" the spillage was not a result of that work.

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