WILDLIFE including ducks and swans were rescued from an oil slick after more than 113 litres of diesel was dumped into the Leeds Liverpool Canal.

The spillage at Enfield Wharf in Clayton Le Moors, which is thought to have come close to killing the birds, has led both waterways officers and Clayton Le Moors’ Area Council’s regeneration team to issue an appeal for information to the public.

Currently British Waterways and the Environment Agency are conducting a clean up and investigation as to where the oil could have originated.

The diesel is thought to have been dumped in the early hours of Thursday morning. It could have been dumped directly into the canal or possibly put into drains as many outside nearby homes feed directly into the canal.

The birds, who were rescued by British Waterways, were taken to an emergency RSPCA wildlife centre, are thought to have been rescued just in time.

Regeneration officer Alison Haworth at Clayton Le Moors area management office said flytipping and pollution in the canal was becoming increasingly common with a devastating effect on wildlife. She said: “We work quite closely with British Waterways and with residents on action groups towards keeping the canals clean and safe for wildlife. One of our residents, who has been monitoring the canal for almost 20 years has seen a serious decline in wildlife - and it is all down to the level of rubbish dumped in the canal.

“There used to be kingfishers at the canal not so long ago and they have completely disappeared. It is something we are trying to change and ovbiously 25 gallons of diesel is a huge setback.

“Apparently it is very common for people who have been working on their cars to dump oil or diesel afterwards. We want to make people fully aware of the problems this causes. Lots of people also aren’t aware the drains outside homes bordering the canal in Clayton, parts of Accrington and Church feed right into the canal.

“Those drains are only supposed to take rain water, not chemicals. Whoever has done this should be brought to account and fined. I would urge anyone with information to contact British Waterways.”

Cath Ferguson, environment manager at British Waterways, said: "At this stage it is unclear how the diesel came to be in the water but British Waterways has deployed specialist booms in order to contain and soak up the diesel.

"The Environment Agency is also aware of the incident and we will continue to work with our colleagues at the EA in order to try to establish the source of the pollution. We would ask any member of the public to contact our office in Wigan on 01942 405700 if they have any further information."