THE extent of fly-tipping in an historic Essex town has been revealed after an astounding seven tonnes of rubbish was removed.

THE extent of fly-tipping in an historic Essex town was revealed this weekend when an astounding seven tonnes of rubbish was removed.

The dumped debris, which included shopping trolleys, wardrobes, bicycles, beds, mattresses, TVs, sinks and fire extinguishers, was recovered from a railway embankment in Harwich.

The clean-up over the weekend was organised by Network Rail and Tendring District Council.

Officials are now urging people in the area to report fly-tippers and stressed that offenders will face fines of up to �1,000.

Chris Curtis, Anglia route general manager for Network Rail, said: “Fly-tipping is not only illegal, it blights neighbourhoods and threatens the safe running of the railway.

“Working with the council, our team has cleaned up an embankment which has long been targeted by mindless fly-tippers.”

Lynda McWilliams, cabinet member for the environment at Tendring District Council, added: “We were delighted to be able to team up with Network Rail to help tackle this issue.

“The council takes fly-tipping very seriously and supports any effort to reduce this type of environmental vandalism.”

The clean-up took place following reports that people from outside the area had been using an alleyway behind homes in Ingestre Street, Albert Street and Albemarle Street to dump rubbish on to a railway embankment.

The haul also included huge amounts of scrap metal and black sacks full of household waste.

A spokesperson for Network Rail added: “The railway is a prime target for litter and fly-tipping by members of the public.

“Not only is this a nuisance for people living alongside the railway but it can also cause problems for the railway itself.

“Litter attracts rats to the railway and rats like to chew on signal cables, which can lead to signal failures, delays and even accidents.”

Anyone who witnesses fly-tipping near a railway can contact Network Rail on 08457 11 41 41.

Reports of fly-tipping on other land can be made to the council on 01255 686768.