Marion Roelofs was surprised this morning when suddenly a thick layer of black gunk drifted through a ditch near her home in Heemstede. According to Marion, the pollution comes from extinguishing the fire that raged in Heemstede last Monday and the stuff smells really bad: “If you go through it with your hand, it’s black.”
Polluted water in Hemstede waters – NH Nieuws
The black gunk floats through the Heemsteedse water for tens of meters at the back of Roelofs’ house, near De Linge on the edge of the village. The water eventually ends up in the Leidsevaart, but the gunk hasn’t gotten that far yet.
“It is a dirty white sludge and it smells of soot,” she tells NH Nieuws. For Roelofs, that smell is important evidence that the filth has to do with the fire. “The smell, but also the material and the fact that it has been floating in it since Monday; one and one is two.”
According to Roelofs, the dirty water is bad for the fish. “I’m not a biologist, but if you already see the fish coming up and gasping for oxygen, I assume there is no oxygen in the water. Something has to be done quickly, this will be a disaster.”
Neighborhood resident Irma Behage did take the photo below this morning.
The Rijnland Water Board has informed NH Nieuws that it is aware of the pollution and has received ‘various reports’ about this.
It is not yet possible to determine how serious the pollution is, but samples of the water have been taken. “Based on those results, the water board can take any follow-up steps,” says a spokesperson. The water has been dammed up in the meantime so that the dirt cannot spread further.