A CONTROLLED release of treated wastewater was carried on the Rhyl coast after a pipe had burst.

Welsh Water said one of its pipes that carries treated waste from its Kinmel Bay Treatment Works had ruptured on Friday, leading to concerns that effluent was leaking into the sea.

Natural Resources Wales (NRW), Denbighshire and Conwy councils were consulted during the repairs, in which the wastewater service released a "minimal" amount of treated water into the sea to ease its network after it had been halted due to the burst.

Temporary signs were placed on Rhyl promenade to warn beachgoers not to swim or let their dogs off the lead.

“Following a burst on one of our pipes that carries treated wastewater form our Kinmel Bay treatment works at the end of last week, our team have worked throughout the weekend to carry out the repair,” a Welsh Water spokesperson said.

“During the repair, wastewater from the area continued to be treated at out treatment works or held in local storage tanks. As a precaution, to ensure the waste network would not be overwhelmed during the repair, we carried out a minimal controlled release of wastewater into the sea.

“NRW are aware of this and signs were put on the beach as a temporary precautionary measure.”

The repair was completed on Sunday and Welsh Water said it is working alongside NRW to monitor the situation.

NRW operations manager David Powell urged residents to get in touch if they do see any pollution leaking from the pipes over the coming days.

“NRW is aware of the pollution incident at Kinmel Bay and has been advising Dŵr Cymru throughout so they can deal with the matter as quickly as possible and minimise the impact on the environment," he said.

“We have been informed this morning that Dŵr Cymru has resolved the matter and we will continue to monitor the situation in partnership with both Conwy and Denbighshire County Council.

“If anyone does witness any pollution please contact NRW’s incident hotline on 0300 065 3000, 24 hours a day, seven days a week."