One of the largest illegal waste dumps in British history containing 30,000 tonnes of rubbish has been discovered.
Members of Knowsley Council were left ‘totally shocked’ and ‘furious’ by the site situated just off the M57 in Kirkby, Merseyside.
Tonnes of waste has been crammed into what appears to be a bomb crater, with some of it spilling over into a mini-reservoir of dirty, almost black water.
Nearby there are stacks of rubbish piled six feet high emitting smoke and a smell described as putrid.
It is thought that much of the waste was dumped in November, when passersby noticed diggers working on the site without permission.
Those responsible for the fly-tipping are yet to be identified, but Merseyside Police have pledged to prosecute them when they are found.
The force have shut the site down with the help of the Environment Agency (EA).
Local councillor Graham Morgan described the case as ‘utterly horrendous’ while speaking with the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).
Members of Knowsley Council were left ‘totally shocked’ and ‘furious’ by the site (pictured) situated just off the M57 in Kirkby, Merseyside
It is thought that much of the waste was dumped in November, when passersby noticed diggers working on the site (pictured) without permission
Those responsible for the fly-tipping are yet to be identified – but in the meantime, Merseyside Police have shut the site (pictured) down with the help of the Environment Agency
‘We are furious at the sheer contempt those responsible have shown for our residents and for the habitat on this site,’ he said.
‘Those responsible need to be pursued and prosecuted.’
The scale of fly-tipping at the site makes it arguably the biggest illegal waste dump ever discovered in Britain.
A pile of dirt, rubbish and soil stretches along compacted delivery routes for acres, with pictures from the area displaying the eye-opening extent of the mess.
The LDRS said the site was discovered by sheer luck, when someone noticed a ‘large construction operation moving around the land’.
When confronted, the workers said they were helping with a nearby roads project – but that has turned out to be untrue. They later disappeared along with their machinery.
An EA spokesperson said: ‘We took action with Knowsley Council and Merseyside Police to shut down access to this illegal waste dump and are hunting down those involved.
‘The public should be assured that we will use all our powers to prosecute the criminals responsible.’
The Kirkby site is one of 517 illegal dumps across England – at least 11 of which are classified as ‘super sites’ because they contain over 20,000 tonnes of waste.
Among them are a 280,000 tonne site in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire and Cornwall, and a 36,000-tonne tip in Kent.
Most illegal dump sites are situated in countryside locations, where they are hidden on what should be greenbelt land, and are usually run by organised criminal gangs, police said.
The gangs make money by charging significantly less than official operators to take and bury waste.
Four men have now been arrested over a 21,000-tonne, 500ft-long site that appeared last year in Kidlington, Oxfordshire, to the horror of locals.
The mega tip is made up of processed domestic waste, such as shredded plastics, polystyrene, and other household items.
The mountain of illegal waste dumped in a field alongside the A34, just metres from the River Cherwell, has sparked outrage and will cost around £10million to clear.
A ‘critical incident’ has been declared over the dump by the EA amid fears of pollution of the nearby water.
The Kirkby site is just one of 517 illegal dumps across England. Four men have now been arrested over a 21,000-tonne, 500ft-long site (pictured) that appeared last year in Kidlington, Oxfordshire, to the horror of locals
The mega tip (pictured) is made up of processed domestic waste, such as shredded plastics, polystyrene, and other household items
Three men have been arrested in recent days in connection with the site, after another man was also detained in relation to it in November. Pictured: One of the arrests
The watchdog said a 52-year-old man from Ashford, Surrey, was arrested on Monday.
He has since been released on conditional bail pending further investigation.
It came after two other men were arrested on Thursday in connection with the site – a 69-year-old in Andover, Hampshire, and a 54-year-old in Slough.
Both were detained for alleged environmental and money laundering offences. They have also been released on bail.
A 39-year-old from Guildford, Surrey, was also arrested in November.
According to the EA, the first report of waste being tipped in Kidlington was made in early July last year.
In December, it announced that planning work to clear up the illegal site had begun.
The EA’s National Environmental Crime Unit is leading the investigation into the Oxfordshire site, working alongside the South East Regional Organised Crime Unit and several police forces.
A private waste clearance firm has been given a £9.6million contract to deal with the site over the next year.
Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds said: ‘The illegal dumping at Kidlington was completely and utterly unacceptable, causing significant harm to the environment and distress to the community.
‘This most recent arrest is an important step toward justice, and we will continue to pursue all waste criminals until this illegal behaviour is stamped out.
‘We’re strengthening our fight against waste crime by increasing enforcement funding, deploying more officers, and imposing tougher checks and penalties for offenders.’
The Welsh city of Newport has also become one of Britain’s worst rubbish hotspots in recent times, with neighbours fearing they are fighting a losing battle against the filth.
Residents have said they are ‘at war’ and are constantly working to clean countryside areas around their homes which have become blighted by the filth.
It has been dubbed the fly-tipping capital of Wales due to its piles of waste – leaving locals feeling they have little choice but to clear the mountains of rubbish themselves.
Illegal rubbish dumping in the city has soared by 6,000 per cent in the last two decades.
The Welsh city of Newport has also become one of Britain’s worst rubbish hotspots in recent times, with neighbours fearing they are fighting a losing battle against the filth. Pictured: An abandoned dual carriageway in the city, which has become a notorious dumping ground
Fridges left on laybys, ovens dumped in trees, and dead animals are all among the detritus – while locals claim trucks and lorries arrive at night and tip their contents out. Pictured: The abandoned dual carriageaway in the city where rubbish is often found illegally dumped
It has been dubbed the fly-tipping capital of Wales due to its piles of waste – leaving locals feeling they have little choice but to clear the mountains of rubbish themselves. Pictured: Rubbish collected by a neighbourhood litter pick
Fridges left on laybys, ovens dumped in trees, and dead animals are all among the detritus, with one abandoned dual carriageway in the city a particularly notorious dumping ground.
Locals have also claimed trucks and lorries arrive will often come to Newport under cover of night just in order to tip their contents out.
Residents previously described the fly-tipping locally as a ‘pandemic’, claiming they have even been unable to sell their homes after cases skyrocketed.
Zoey Newton-Karbautski Scott is part of a group carrying out weekly clear-ups in the Duffryn part of the city, but says the problem is getting worse.
She said: ‘It is an ongoing problem. They come along and either dump their rubbish or try to burn it. People cannot be bothered.
‘Not many people walk towards the back of the properties in Duffryn so it’s an easy place for them to fly tip.
‘I do not know when it started, but I do know things have got worse since COVID, perhaps because you must log in online and book your rubbish disposal rather than go to a depot.
‘I don’t think we will ever win the war on fly tipping. Someone must know why these people are choosing to dump their rubbish all the time.’
Newton-Karbautski Scott is part of the Friends of Rabbit Hill group, which is hoping to show other neighbours the problem and highlight the issue.
She continued: ‘We need to educate children in schools.
‘The problem is when they become teenagers, they will see other people fly-tipping and then that behaviour carries on into adulthood.
‘People need to understand what they are doing is wrong.’
Residents previously claimed they were unable to sell their properties due to the amount of illegally dumped waste.
Ellen Law, 70, who claimed the fly-tipping has been going on since the nineties, said: ‘I don’t think there is anywhere like this with this amount of fly-tipping.
‘It has been impossible to sell the house because this area is really known now for fly-tipping.’
She continued: ‘To see it happening in real time is shocking.
‘This is the area that has become a huge black spot and to watch it grow bigger is heartbreaking.
‘Fly-tipping was an unusual thing and has now become the norm. It is horrible if you think of all the beautiful animals you have here.’