FLY-TIPPED waste is discovered in Barrow five times a day on average, figures reveal.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs data shows 1,986 fly-tipping incidents were reported to Barrow Borough Council in 2019-20 – 660 more than the previous year.

The Local Government Association warned that the offence costs taxpayers almost £50 million a year to clear up.

Dumped waste was found in Barrow's back alleyways 1,339 times accounting for 67% of incidents.

Fly-tipped rubbish can include household waste, white goods and construction waste.

Environmental Charity Keep Britain Tidy says the crime is being driven by conmen who offer to remove household rubbish for a fee but do not dispose of it correctly.

Across England, the most common amount of rubbish dumped and reported to councils is equivalent to a small van load.

Rubbish loads of this size accounted for 34% of all 976,000 fly-tipping incidents nationally last year.

Across Barrow, small van loads of waste were dumped illegally on 1,846 occasions – 93% of all reports.

David Renard, environment spokesman for the Local Government Association, said: “Fly-tipping is inexcusable.

"It is not only an eyesore for residents, but a serious public health risk, creating pollution and attracting rats and other vermin. We continue to urge the Government to review sentencing guidelines for fly-tipping, so that offenders are given bigger fines for more serious offences to act as a deterrent."

He added that manufacturers should provide more take-back services so customers can hand in old goods when buying new ones.

Barrow-in-Furness Borough Council took action over 247 fly-tipping offences in 2019-20.

The authority wrote 125 warning letters and issued seven fixed penalty notices.

It also prosecuted one incident in court, at a cost of £1,525. Such action resulted in one fine, totalling £1,525, being handed to an offender.

Allison Ogden-Newton OBE, chief executive of Keep Britain Tidy, said: “This environmental crime is being driven by ‘man with a van’ operators who are conning the public with what appears to be a cheap way of getting rid of their rubbish, but one that leads to illegal disposal and environmental devastation. This must stop. We believe the only way to prevent further law-breaking is to fundamentally reform the system."

Central, Hindpool and Risedale wards were the three 'most prolific' areas for fly-tipping in the 2018/19 Barrow period.