MINDLESS vandals have dumped a range of household items in a rural area of Christchurch less than a mile from the council run recycling centre.

Various items including two mattresses, several chairs, wooden storage units and dozens of books were found strewn across Ambury Lane, where the road runs underneath the railway line.

The dumping also spread into the River Mude, which runs parallel to the gravel highway.

The waste appeared to have been set alight at some stage, with visible burn damage to some of the books while some pages had been torn out and blown across the highway.

Fly-tipping was also found dumped in a lay-by on the same road as it runs alongside the Christchurch bypass.

The waste included various pieces of sheeting and plasterboard in a large builder’s disposal sack.

Burton and Winkton ward councillor Colin Jamieson said: “It is totally unnecessary. I don’t think it is the case people are going out and dumping their own stuff.

“I believe it is people collecting it from others and just dumping it.

“The issue is do they have the proper licence to carry waste.

“We need to use all the options available to us to tackle the problem.”

As reported by the Daily Echo, there have been several incidents of large scale fly-tipping throughout the borough this year.

Two separate sites at St Catherine's Hill have been targeted and conservation organisations have said the issue is putting a growing strain on finances.

Cllr Jamieson said he thinks it is largely people in commercial vehicles who are fly-tipping as they face charges at waste centres.

"If someone is caught they should be dealt with using the full force of the law," he said.

"Currently the message that people will face punishment is not being put out and that is wrong."

The Burton representative said prosecutions have to be carried through.

He added: "The right message is if you are caught in this area we are going to take you to court and you are going to pay the consequences of your actions. If this happened, the message would get around and I think we would see less fly-tipping."

Michael Moon, head of service operations at the Dorset Waste Partnership, said: “These two fly-tips were reported to us late on Friday. We dispatched a team to investigate and clear-up the next working day.

"If you see a fly-tip, make a note of where it is, take a picture if you can and note down any other details. Never touch the waste or confront fly-tippers. You can report it to us by visiting our fly-tipping webpage www.dorsetforyou.gov.uk/flytipping or calling Dorset Direct on 01305 221040.

"Where there is sufficient evidence the Dorset Waste Partnership (DWP) will continue to investigate all reported fly-tipping incidents and attempt to trace and prosecute anyone found to be fly-tipping on public land.”