VILLAGERS in Clovenfords are being warned to watch what they flush after salmon died on the nearby Meigle Burn.

More than a dozen dead fish were pulled from the stream on Friday morning.

And ecologists believe they were killed by raw sewage after a nearby drain had blocked.

The Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) and Scottish Water were both called out to the incident.

Officers from the utility company, after clearing the blockage, delivered flush-warning leaflets to houses in the village.

And they are continuing to monitor the burn.

A spokesman told the Border Telegraph: “On Friday afternoon, we were called out to investigate a sewer blockage in Clovenfords.

“The blockage appeared to be the result of bathroom or kitchen waste such as wipes, which should be disposed of in bins rather than flushed down the toilet.

“The blockage resulted in waste water from the sewer entering a rain water pipe, which then discharges into the burn.

“We cleared the blockage and cleaned up the area affected as quickly as possible.

“Unfortunately around 18 dead fish were removed from the water.

“We have returned to the burn daily since this happened and will continue to monitor the burn and the network to ensure everything is back to normal.

“We have been running a campaign to promote the importance of disposing of kitchen and bathroom waste in the correct way.

“Cooking fat, oils and grease combined with bathroom waste such as cotton buds, nappies and baby wipes can produce solidified fat and material that can’t break down easily like toilet paper. This can then lead to blockages and flooding, which can be distressing to local communities.” SEPA’s ecology officers removed the dead fish from the Meigle Burn on Friday.

And they have also taken water samples from further downstream to determine the extent of the contamination.

A spokesperson from SEPA told the Border Telegraph: “SEPA officers attended an incident in the Meigle Burn on Friday, following a report of dead fish in the watercourse by a member of the public.

“On inspection, 15 fish were found to have been killed following an overflow of sewage from a blocked sewage main.

“While the incident was short-lived and relatively minor in scale, SEPA officers have taken samples to determine the impact on the local environment and will continue to liaise with Scottish Water as to their investigation into the blockage.” The Meigle Burn flows through a culvert beneath the village and into the Caddon Water, which in turn flows into the River Tweed.

Investigators from the Tweed Commission are also following up Friday’s incident.

Sewage problems in the past at Clovenfords have led to upgrades by Scottish Water.

And local councillor Gavin Logan hopes this will be an isolated incident.

Local councillor Gavin Logan told us: “There has been sewage problems previously in Clovenords but this is he first time that there has been a significant number of dead fish.

“It is concerning particularly as there has been salmon par reported as being amongst the fish killed by sewage contaminating the Meigle Burn.

“Thankfully Scottish Water and SEPA acted quickly and cleared a blockage in a sewer which had overflowed into a storm drain.

“Villagers are being reminded to be careful as to what they dispose of into the sewage system.” Scottish Water would like to remind all householders that all wipes, sanitary items, cotton wool, buds and nappies should be bagged and binned. Customers can learn more about what they can do to keep the water cycle running, what should not be flushed down toilets or poured down sinks and how they can save their drains, and protect the local environment at www.scottishwater.co.uk/cycle.