FLY-TIPPERS have wrecked a Christchurch beauty spot leaving it strewn with dangerous rubbish.

Burnt-out vehicles, lorry loads of plasterboard, household appliances and food and garden waste are among the items destroying a popular walking spot on the outskirts of the town.

Now CCTV cameras could be installed there in a bid to catch offenders.

The affected area is accessed via Ambury Lane, which runs parallel to the A35 Christchurch bypass between Salisbury Road, Burton and land at the rear of Sainsbury’s.

Ambury Lane turns into an unnamed dirt track, which continues on to Gus Common, on the Christchurch and New Forest border near land behind the Cat and Fiddle pub on the A35.

It is a well-known fly-tipping hotspot and now the Dorset Waste Partnership (DWP) is considering installing cameras to deter those responsible.

The recent introduction of charges at tips in Dorset and Bournemouth are being blamed by many for the fly-tipping.

Burton parish and borough councillor David Flagg said: “This area has been a thorn in the parish council’s side for many years - it is a magnet for fly-tippers.

“My personal view is that the charges have made the problem worse. We have tried covert cameras there in the past but they didn’t work - now it’s time for proper CCTV cameras to be mounted on lampposts.”

Christchurch councillor Margaret Phipps, environment portfolio holder and representative on the DWP joint committee, said a review of enforcement by the partnership is currently under way.

She added: “The aim is to be more proactive and to explore the use of CCTV. Ambury Lane will be put forward as a possible location for a trial of cameras.”

Latest figures reveal that fly-tipping cost the taxpayer more than £170,000 to clear up across Dorset last year.

Local authorities across Dorset, Poole and Bournemouth received 5,930 reports of rubbish having deliberately been abandoned at the roadside, at beauty spots and on public land all at a huge cost to the public.