TONNES of silt have been removed from an Urmston pond to help breathe new life into it for its waterborne inhabitants.

The silt in Duttons pond, in Flixton, had taken two foot in depth off the waterline, which is run by Urmston Angling Association.

John Lynch, 69, the society's fisheries manager, has been helping monitor the removal of the silt, which involved more than 40 hours of pumping a collection of detritus including rotting vegetation.

Mr Lynch said: "Since its removal the depth of the pond has returned to its five foot depth and things that cause gas and kill the fish, removed."

The pond, which was formerly part of Dutton's Farm, was taken over by the newly formed angling association in 1974.

The same year Mr Lynch became a member.

The pond boasts a wide number of fish including carp, bream, roach, chub, tench and perch.

The work being carried out has been paid for after a grant of £6,500 was made by Trafford Housing Trust.

The removal of the silt cost £5,000 and the remainder, according to Mr Lynch, is to replace vegetation on the pond's island.

"When I was a lad there used to be so many bullrushes, and over the years these broke up and disappeared, and these will now be replaced."

Some of the notable catches in the pond include a 21lb 5oz carp and a 5lb 12oz chub.

John explained: "Every year we get a good spawn, so not only do we have a wide variety of fish, we also attract kingfishers, herons and the less desirable Canada geese."

"We currently have 220 member although we seem to have lost many youngsters to computer and video games.

"What is fantastic when young people do come along is that because the pond is so well stocked it means it is not hard to get a bites. And it's wonderful to see the look on their faces when they pull out a little perch and that is the hook for the rest of their lives."

The association meets the first Tuesday of each month at the John Alker, Flixton Road, at 8.30pm.

Ann Day, chairman of the Urmston Community Panel, said: “The Urmston Community Panel chose to award £6,500 to Urmston Angling Club to help with its regeneration of Dutton’s Pond as this is an important piece of environmental improvement work that will benefit the whole community.

"The Club is dedicated to preserving the flora and fauna of the area and keeping the pond accessible to all residents of Trafford – this project will improve the area’s attractiveness, and will hopefully result in increasing the number of people who visit and enjoy the area, both now and in the years to come.”