Pollution fears at a marshland in Tenby have been allayed this week.
An officer from Pembrokeshire County Council's public protection section carried out a site inspection after being alerted to the problem by a local resident last Tuesday.
Vegetation die-off was noted on a specific area of land between the Salterns Industrial Estate and the Ritec River (towards the flood gate), with only new shoots of reeds growing. However, no obvious evidence of ground contamination was identified at the time.
Said a spokesperson for the authority: "The matter has been reported to the Environment Agency and an officer from the agency has also inspected the area. No pollution incidents or changes in the water quality of the river have been recorded in the last 12 months for this specific area. "Advice has been sought from the council's ecologist on the likely causes. "Although the nature and origin of this phenomenon is currently unknown, a likely cause of the die-off could be linked with saline intrusion at high tide onto the land, as this area is a flood plain.
Other causes could include natural diseases, inclement growing conditions, or the deposit/ presence of phytotoxic substances onto the ground.
"The investigation will continue to try and ascertain the cause of the incident."