THEY are packed with rare species, considered Dorset's most beautiful areas and home to England's only natural World Heritage Site.

But even this has failed to protect rural Dorset from falling victim to a plague of flytipping, a shock new report has revealed.

The Purbeck area, home to the UNESCO Jurassic Coast and considered as one of the UK's most beautiful spots, suffered 313 incidents of fly-tipping in 2018, with four taking place on agricultural land.

North Dorset, which includes the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, recorded 486 incidents of fly-tipping, with 11 on agricultural land. West Dorset, which also includes the Jurassic Coast plus much of the countryside made famous in the novels of Thomas Hardy, suffered 690 incidents of fly-tipping with seven on farmland and there were 416 incidents in Weymouth and Portland.

However, Will Kendrick, of Farmers and Mercantile Insurance Brokers (FMIB), said the true scale of flytipping on farmland is not reflected in the figures, as the statistics exclude the majority of private-land incidents.

He said that farmers who fall prey to this crime are having to shoulder the burden, responsible for meeting the cost of clearing rubbish from their land themselves – at an average cost of £1,000 per incident. They are also liable if the dumped rubbish damages the countryside.

Mr Kendrick, who advises farmers in the region, said: “Flytipping is a blight on our countryside, but dumped waste is not only visually impactful and a nuisance – it can be a source of pollution and cause harm to humans, animals and the environment.

“This year’s Defra figures show that it is not only everyday household waste that gets dumped by flytippers – thousands of incidents involve asbestos, clinical waste and chemical and fuel waste.

“So, farmers are not only have to fork out for clean-up costs but also have to worry about the danger it poses to themselves, their workers, their animals and their land.

“These flytippers, both thoughtless individuals and unscrupulous ‘waste businesses’, don’t care that their irresponsible actions could lead to farmers being prosecuted under the Environmental Protection Act 1990," he said.

Director of the Dorset Waste Partnership, Karyn Punchard, said: “While we cannot remove fly-tipped waste from private land, where there is sufficient evidence the Dorset Waste Partnership (DWP) will continue to investigate all reported incidents. We do support the aims of the Country Landowners Association (CLA) Action Plan against fly-tipping and work with private landowners to provide advice and guidance.

"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. You can report it to us by visiting our fly-tipping webpage (dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/flytipping) or call Dorset Direct on 01305 221040.

"Our Tip-Off campaign aims to address the problems around people handing their waste to an unlicensed ‘man in a van’ and what Dorset residents can do to help us in the fight against this illegal and anti-social behaviour. Please visit dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/tip-off for more information.”