Sussex couple struggling to dispose of two thousand litres of oil fear polluting water

• Reporter John Ryall has been to meet the couple

A retired couple from Sussex struggling to dispose of two thousand litres of oil say they are living in fear of it polluting a nearby river and the sea.

Denise Crossan and her husband filled tanks with the engine oil over many years while running a fleet of vans from their riverside home at St Leonards. However, now the tanks are leaking.

At the bottom of their yard there is a river leading to local beaches and the Combe Haven nature reserve.

To try to tackle the problem, every day the pair pour absorbant granules to prevent oil from reaching the river.

The couple is desperate to get rid of the cracked and leaking tanks but they say no-one will take on the job.

Denise Crossan explained: "They won't even come and look, that's what is so annoying. No-one seems to want to help us...

"We don't want it to go into the river because the river goes down to the sea just over the road from us. It's just a nightmare that no-one will even come and look to help us out."

In statements, the Environment Agency says disposing of the tanks is the responsibility of Hastings Borough Council and the council says it's the responsibility of the Environment Agency.

Without official approval, private companies are reluctant to get involved.

Hastings Borough Council has since advised Mr and Mrs Crossan to contact the ORA, the trade association to the waste recycling industry, for advice.

Two companies who think they may be able to help the couple have since got in touch with them.

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