£10k funding appeal launched following Walsall canal cyanide leak

A £10,000 funding appeal has been launched by the Canal and River Trust to try to restore the canal and wildlife damaged by the chemical spill in Walsall last week.

A major incident was declared after a chemical incident at Anochrome Ltd on Monday, 12 August when sodium cyanide leaked into the waterway.

Efforts and now being made to contain the spill and try to help wildlife along the stretch of water from the Walsall lock flight to the lock flights at Rushall/Ryders Green and Perry Barr.

Henriette Breukelaar, the regional director at Canal & River Trust, explained why they need to start work now: “The chemical spill on the Walsall Canal has been extremely distressing, and has caused great harm to local wildlife.

"We know that so many people share our outrage at what happened last week and will want to help the response.

"Of course, the company responsible should pay, but the timing and outcome of the investigation by the Environment Agency is uncertain, and we must act now to protect nature as best we can."

The restricted area along the canal is now just over half a mile stretching from James Bridge on Bentley Mill Way in Darlaston to Rollingmill Street in Walsall.

This is because there are high levels of sodium cyanide and zinc cyanide in the water.

Paul Wilkinson, ecologist at Canal & River Trust, said: “The spillage has been contained to a relatively small area, but the impact on wildlife remains to be seen.

"Fish in the affected area have been killed and other wildlife in the area may have been affected. Sadly, we expect the aquatic ecosystem will have been devastated or lost for the section the pollution has passed through, from the smallest invertebrates right up to the otter that has a territory through that section.

"This is possibly our last recorded location of water voles on our waterways within the Birmingham & Black Country region from our 2022 citizen science surveys. Without natural balance, invasives and algae will quickly take over: the impacts could take years to fully recover."

The Environment Agency is investigating the incident. In a statement Anochrome Ltd said:

"Our immediate response was to notify the Environment Agency and Severn Trent Water. Our senior management team has been – and remain - on-site working collaboratively with all relevant authorities and agencies to minimise and contain the spill.

"In addition, from the moment we were aware of the incident, we have made all our facilities available to the authorities and agencies in attendance, including inhouse laboratory testing facilities.

"The safety of our community and the environment is our top priority. We are focused on limiting the impact of this incident and will provide further updates as they become available."

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