THOUSANDS of gallons of diesel have saturated the ground beneath a supermarket depot - threatening wildlife and waterways.

The leak, which environmentalists say could have a "devastating effect", was confirmed by supermarket chain Morrisons.

Some 60,000 gallons of diesel fuel - the quivalent to half the amount of water in the leisure pool at Larkfield Leisure Centre - was discovered leaking from underground pipes about 10 months ago when Morrisons took over the former Safeway depot site in Aylesford.

It is not known when the leak started.

Environment Agency spokeswoman, Lucy Harding, said it was alerted when developers working next to the site found contaminated groundwater.

She added: "Oil can have a devastating effect on groundwater and damage plants and wildlife.

"It can cause serious damage to rivers and waterways. At this point we don’t believe the River Medway has been impacted.

"We are investigating how it happened, how much diesel was spilled and what the impact has been."

She added: "We will continue to monitor and investigate other damage and consider enforcement action."

A Morrisons spokesman said once the leak was found, it was stopped immediately.

He added: "By agreement with the Enviroment Agency, we are currently in the process of removing the diesel deposits."

It is an offence to pollute groundwaters under the Water Resources Act.