THIS festering pile of rubbish in an alley off Boscombe's Haviland Road is so big it can be seen from space.

The mountain of household debris occupies more square footage than some of the flats that surround it.

Bournemouth Echo:

Image from Google Maps

And with its nine fridge freezers, tables, chairs and sofas, not to mention beer cans and broken glass, there is more than enough items to furnish several properties.

Now residents want something done.

One pensioner, who lives in Haviland Road and who uses the alley to access the high street said it looked like ' a legal fly tip'.

"It's been there for more than four years to my knowledge," she said. "I contacted the council who told me it was private land and they can't do anything about it. I don't think it could belong to any of the businesses round here because they wouldn't go through all those fridges and freezers."

Bournemouth Echo:

She said few people had ever seen the rubbish appearing but it occasionally changed. "sometimes it comes and goes but it never used to be as high as that," she said. She also expressed fears that another vacant area in Haviland Road could be used in a similar manner, if the council didn't attempt to do something about it.

One local business owner, who asked not to be named, branded the pile a fire hazard. Another local resident described the mess 'disgusting'.

Bournemouth Echo:

Sophie Ricketts, Targeted Enforcement Manager Bournemouth Borough Council said the council was aware of the Haviland pile which was on privately owned land.

“We have been engaging with multiple individuals with an interest in the site, which is subject to recently granted planning permission," she said. "We continue to work with the responsible parties to include enforcement action, to ensure this land is cleared at the earliest opportunity. We would encourage residents with any evidence of fly tipping to report this to us.”

The Echo understands that the site was the subject of a planning application in 2016, to build three properties and a bike store. However, there appears to be no sign of any preliminary clearance work on the site. The rubbish can be seen using satellites on Google Earth.