Disaster is averted on the Delph

Disaster has been averted on a Fenland drain suffering from plummeting oxygen levels, the Environment Agency said today.

Emergency measures were put into place in the Delph, on the Norfolk/Cambridgeshire border, after anglers reported fish gasping for oxygen on the surface.

Officials said the problem had been caused by stale water which had been standing on Welney Washes all summer entering the river.

“We were concerned this could impact on water quality,” said EA senior environment officer Greg Oakes. “We were getting very low oxygen levels and we have an action plan for when levels fall.”

Aerators were installed to boost oxygen levels and supplies of hydrogen peroxide – which can be added to river water in extreme emergencies to provide a rapid oxygen boost – were placed at strategic points, as anglers and scientists expected a major fish kill.

But Mr Oakes said while a few had died in isolated pockets, the measures had largely worked.
“Oxygen levels have steadily gone up over the last few weeks at all key points,” he said.

“A lot of fish are carrying fungus, which is a sign of long-term stress, but we’ve not seen any major mortality – just small pockets.

“There is always an element of luck with all these things but we have spent large amounts of resource going up there nearly every day sampling.”

In recent weeks, pike anglers have noticed the water has an unusual dark tinge in several areas. The EA does not yet know what has caused it but does not believe it to be harmful to fish stocks.

Man rescued after pikers raise alarm

A man was rescued from floodwater on Sunday after pike anglers called the emergency services.

An Air Sea Rescue helicopter was scrambled after people pike fishing on the Delph at Welney, on the Norfolk/Cambridgeshire border, reported hearing cries for help.

A 43-year-old man from North Norfolk was plucked to safety from the flooded Welney Washes and airlifted to hospital to be treated for hypothermia, after being trapped for six hours in waist-deep water.

The man is believed to have tried to drive along the A1101 Welney Causeway, before being forced to abandon his car.

The road and the Ouse Washes it crosses have been flooded for some weeks, meaning there is no access to the village from Littleport, to the South-east.

Anglers fishing the Delph and Old Bedford are advised to only try and gain access from the North - Wisbech/Upwell/A1101.