AT least a thousand fish could be dead after slurry entered the Crumlin River on Sunday, a member of the Crumlin and District Angling Association has said.
David Kennedy of the Crumlin and District Angling Association said he was contacted regarding a “potentially serious slurry spill” on Sunday afternoon. Despite not having had a fish kill on the river in over a decade, David said incidents of pollution “happen on a much too regular basis.”
At least a thousand fish could be dead following slurry spill
The slurry “went up as far as Dundrod,” David said. “In just the one section there were 30 dead fish in 100 metres," he added.
“Today, going to 200 metres we could identify 100 dead fish. We’re working our way up and down the river trying to find out where the fish kill stops, but we certainly think we’re talking at least a thousand fish.”
David continued: “We see pollution in the river way too often. We have seen diesel go into the water and raw sewage.
“The deterrents aren’t enough because it’s happening too often, if the deterrents were sufficient this wouldn’t be happening on this scale.”
A spokesperson for the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) said: "At 10.56 on Sunday 12 February 2023, The Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) received a water pollution report indicating that there was slurry in the Crumlin River upstream of Crumlin, Co Antrim.
“NIEA deployed a Water Quality Inspector to the area to confirm the report and to assess the environmental impact. A fish kill has now been confirmed by the NIEA and a joint investigation with DAERA Inland Fisheries remains ongoing.”
