Lowton duck pond drying up 'isn't a problem' says council

The pond, off Fir Tree Road, has dried up in the hot weather in previous years, but residents say no help has been given this time.

One resident says that in the past, the council and fire service have helped to refill the pond after it had dried up.

Residents say the dried-up pond is distressing to see in the hot weather

Jane Cunliffe owns a dog-walking business in the area, she said: "It is so distressing to see.

"There is a moorhen nesting its young in a nest raised above the mud nearby the middle of the pond."

Jane added: "She is very vulnerable as she can't leave the young in the nest and is prey to foxes and other predators because there is no water to protect her."

Another resident, Andrea, said that the pond used to have barriers around its perimeter which prevented it from draining completely.

She said: "When it got very full, the excess water would just run over the top of the barrier, so the pond didn't flood.

"We need something like that again to minimise the water running away."

Jane says she has seen at least one dead duckling in the area recently

Dave Lyon, assistant director for environment at Wigan Council, said: "In this instance, the ‘pond’ is part of a sustainable urban drainage system (SUDs) that collects surface water run-off from the surrounding housing estate and open space.

“If someone were to refill the pond with water, it would drain away again as this is how the system has been designed to work in order to help maintain safe surface water levels within the housing estate."

Mr Lyon added: "However, this isn’t necessarily a problem to wildlife.

"Many animal populations, like newts and beetles, actually benefit in the long-term from their pond drying out because the drying reduces the number of predators in the pond, especially fish."