Fears of oil spill on Dovercourt Blue Flag beach

Large pockets of pollution could be seen all the way from the lighthouses to the West End beach in Dovercourt.

The beach is known for its prized Blue Flag status and its high water quality standards.

But residents have now taken to social media raising concerns about the unknown substance polluting the water.

They have also issued a warning to dog owners to avoid the coastline.

Harwich town councillor Geoff Smith has reported the substance to the Environment Agency.

He said: “I saw a post on social media and that is why I went down on Sunday and had a look for myself to see what it was like.

“It is hard to tell because I don’t have the expertise but from a distance it did look as if it could be something like that but you can sometimes get very fine weed which looks like it could be oil in the water.

“Going by what I have seen on social media a lot of people have said they have a tar like substance on their dogs’ paws and have had a job to clean it.”

The issue has been reported to the Environment Agency

Bonita Howe, 51, of Low Road, Dovercourt, added: “I am concerned as my dog loves the beach and loves swimming, so I have to keep him well away. It’s such a shame and I am not even sure they can get rid of what I think is oil.”

Another dog owner added: “From what I washed off my dog’s fur it seems to be crude oil, nasty to clean off.”

Mr Smith added: “Yesterday afternoon I walked on the seafront again and it looked slightly worse.It is down to the Environment Agency to do their job and act accordingly.”

A Tendring Council spokesman said the authority was aware of the reports and was working with partners to investigate.

He added: “Our teams have cleared some isolated pollution along our coastline, which is awaiting specialist disposal, while colleagues in other agencies have collected samples for further investigation.

“In addition partners have also surveyed sections of our coastline, while there are no reports of any oil spills in the area.

“We will continue to work with our partners to monitor and investigate the situation and, as always, urge beach users to take care along the shoreline. Any pollution can be reported to us via our website.”

Visit tendringdc.gov.uk.