CEREDIGION council has said that the dredging of Aberystwyth harbour was “done under licence” after complaints from residents that the “oily” dredged material was dumped on South Beach.

Diggers scraped up tons of sludge from the harbour bed near the entrance to the Gap towards the end of the River Ystwyth on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The mud and silt has then been laid out in a line by dumper trucks on South Beach.

After resident complaints that the “oily” substance was affecting the beach, council workmen “scraped” the beach and instead dumped the material over the sea wall.

Resident Ian Halling, who photographed the scene, said he was watching the dredging take place and “the stuff being dredged up was very black and contained a lot of silt”.

“As it was being dumped on the beach it was clear that it had an oily appearance not unlike tarmac,” he told the Cambrian News.

“I didn’t personally go onto the beach - there was too much heavy machinery, but people who did have described it as sticking to clothes, shoes and dogs.

“They also describe a strong petrochemical smell."

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