A PROJECT to breathe new life into a stream once polluted by minewater was unveiled yesterday.

Durham North Labour MP Giles Radice opened the Coal Authority's £230,000 minewater treatment scheme, at Edmondsley, near Chester-le-Street.

The Cong Burn, a tributary of the River Wear, has suffered contamination from old mine workings at Edmondsley Colliery since the mine was abandoned in 1920.

For many years, the burn, which has a high iron content, was ochre stained for more than a kilometre downstream from where the water was discharged.

Now a natural reed bed has been created to remove impurities from the water, which discharges into the burn from an underground tunnel associated with Edmondsley's disused colliery.

A large shallow pond has been constructed and planted with about 16,000 reeds.

Water from the burn is pumped through the woodland and into the pond, where the reeds collect impurities.

The water is then returned, cleansed, to the watercourse.

The project, one of the first of its kind in Britain, also involves the extensive rejuvenation of the local habitat, making it more attractive to wildlife.

Fish and insect life are expected to be restored to the stream.

Seating, interpretation boards and paths with wheelchair access have also been installed to encourage residents to make the most of the countryside at their doorstep.

A pond and wildflower meadow have been created so that children from nearby Edmondsley Primary School can use the area to learn about the environment.

The scheme was funded and administered by the Coal Authority in partnership with Chester-le-Street District Council and Durham Wildlife Trust.

Construction took place during late 1998, with the site fully established in the summer of 1999.

The water quality of the Cong Burn has improved dramatically as a result of the scheme.

The orange staining of the streambed has quickly disappeared ands the wildlife value of the stream is improving.

Council leader Malcolm Pratt said: "The authority is committed to protecting and enhancing the local environment and we are delighted that this scheme will reclaim part of the Cong Burn as well as giving youngsters an important insight into the local wildlife.