April 2018
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News
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News Concern over “oil spill” in Stoke Brook
A
Tobogganing on a slope of the Tump, behind Bradley Stoke Community School
anyone could slip through into the lake, so this was reported and has since been repaired. The weir cover, which was previously removed, still has a temporary cover, but we’re hoping that it will be replaced with a more secure padlocked metal plate soon. Our ‘Run England’ sign (near the leisure centre) was so badly vandalised it had to be removed completely. Unfortunately, the company that produced it are no longer trading, so we don’t know when it will return. We are again being plagued with graffiti. I’m not going to call them graffiti artists as that suggests they have some semblance of talent, which as they can only spray swear words and crude pictures, shows that they have none. Every instance of graffiti is reported to the police and the town council and the cost of its removal is logged. When they’re caught, they are going to be landed with quite a hefty
bill! If you see any please let us know as soon as possible on our dedicated email address reportit@threebrooks.info and we can deal with it. Photos are vital as evidence, so please email those to us too. We’d prefer them not to go on Facebook as we don’t want to advertise their ‘art.’ There are lots of things we would like to do to improve the reserve, including the provision of more seating and a play area for smaller children, but each time I suggest it, we look at the vandalism we have and think,“Is there any point?” as it wouldn’t last. It is hugely demoralising to see our efforts constantly trashed, but the reserve itself and the steady stream of people who stop to say, “Well done, you’re doing a grand job,” have persuaded us that, despite all the setbacks, it is still a job worth doing and one that we take great pride in. So I’m afraid you’re stuck with us for a while yet! ● www.three-brooks.info
s the snow disappeared at the beginning of March and everybody breathed a sigh of relief that they could go back to work and school on the Monday, the melt-water was bringing an unwelcome delivery for our local nature reserves. Somewhere upstream of Forty Acres in Stoke Gifford, an oily substance had found its way into the Stoke Brook and was flowing downstream through the area. The Environment Agency were contacted, as they are responsible for investigating pollution events in the water courses. South Gloucestershire Council and the town council were also informed and there were many messages and comments on the TBNCG Facebook page. The concern and
walk back up the brook until the culprit is found, but the brook is culverted under the railway and splits in several places. The oily substance is a light hydrocarbon and easily mixes with water, only showing on the surface where the water flow is slow. This means that booms or sponges in the brook won’t retain or absorb the oil and therefore haven’t been deployed. The extent of the leak appears to be diminishing at the time of writing and there have been no visible effects on the local wildlife, yet. With events like this, it is very important that the public help by reporting direct to the Environment Agency. Investigations can then be conducted straight away. A rainbow sheen on the surface of the water at one of the weirs on Stoke Brook is a telltale indicator of a pollution incident upstream in Stoke Gifford or Filton
interest from the public has been enormous. The Environment Agency, along with Wessex Water, have spent many hours out searching for the source of the pollution. It may sound like a simple job to
If you spot a worsening of this spill, please phone 0800 807060 and quote incident reference number 1594021. Please also report any future spills on the same number. Rob Williams, TBNCG
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