Slick organised criminals are targeting ‘isolated’ landowners in order to dump huge quantities of illegal waste, the Country Land and Business Association (CLA) has warned.

The association argued that many criminal ringleaders have ‘a very legitimate front’ – meaning it is difficult to tell whether operators are genuine.

It follows a notice from the Environment Agency this week urging landowners to be vigilant when entering contracts with tenants, after more than 100,000 tonnes of illegal waste had to be removed from sites in Lincolnshire.

Around 100,000 tonnes of tyres had to be removed from land at Holme Farm near Boston, which had been leased to operators who abandoned the site.

The land in turn was sold, with the responsibility and cost of disposing the tyres falling to the new owner. The Environment Agency got involved to advise and ensure the tyres’ disposal was in accordance with regulations.