Fly-tippers have been turning a field in Risca into an illegal landfill site

A patch of wasteland in Risca is attracting fly-tippers who have created their own big illegal landfill site.

The privately-owned wooded area in Newport Road, Risca, had planning permission granted for a housing development in 2008, but it never went ahead and has been undeveloped for over a decade.

Now it has attracted the attention of fly-tippers who had dumped their rubbish, then appeared to have put soil on top, and then dumped a load more

Concerned locals who use the area for dog walking are worried that if something isn't done about the heaps of waste, soon the nearby Ebbw River will be polluted, threatening wildlife.

The land is off Newport Road, Risca (Google Maps)

Household waste, doors, chemical containers and even a washing machine have been found (Rachel Meredith)

Rachel Meredith, who lives in Risca and walks her dog at the site, said: "Usually it's lovely there with flowers and wildlife. Local people walk through the field with their dogs, there's a little path down the side of the river and children play in the trees there."

But she said that now the area had been spoilt and there was a risk of pollution.

"At some point this stuff is going to go down in to the soil and end up in the river," she said.

The piles of waste and rubble are close to the Ebbw River (Rachel Meredith)

Grass has started to grow over some of the older mounds (Rachel Meredith)

More about fly-tipping:

Everything you need to know about fly-tipping

In August, Mrs Meredith and her husband noticed lorry tracks on the waste ground. The tracks led to at a huge mound of soil that had been on the site "for years."

"We noticed that a load of the soil had disappeared that particular day. It wasn't until three weeks later, when we came through again, that we saw just piles of rubble, household waste, bricks and plaster," she added.

The mound of soil had reduced by "more than half" in a month, according to Mrs Meredith, who said the earth was being used to cover over the mounds of rubbish.

A huge mound of soil has been used to cover the waste (Rachel Meredith)

New piles of rubbish have been appearing on a regular basis (Rachel Meredith)

Councillor Bob Owen, Independent for Risca West, said he was aware of the problem because he also walked his dog at the site.

"The council are aware and monitoring it. At the moment the site is underdeveloped, but we're hoping the rubbish will go shortly and development can start again.

"The issue of fly-tipping, I believe, has been curtailed and the owners have got control and are actively trying to engage someone to clean it," he said.

Councillor Owen said the owners of the land had found the locks to the entrance gates had been changed without their knowledge. They have now changed the locks again in the hope of stopping whoever has been dumping waste there.

Wales Online has approached the owners of the land for comment.