Officers have shared a shocking photo showing the huge extent of rubbish dumped on a country lane in County Durham as an investigation is launched.
The fly-tipping incident happened near Hamsterley village in County Durham last week with Durham Constabulary attending the scene.
A photo shared by Bishop Auckland Police shows wooden boards and different materials splayed across the country road, largely blocking it.
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A spokesperson for Bishop Auckland Police said: "Officers attended a large fly-tipping incident near to Hamsterley village.
"Durham County Council will be taking the lead in this investigation."
Flytipping is the illegal dumping of household or trade waste and is a crime.
The council investigates and removes fly-tipped rubbish from land and open spaces and if it finds sufficient evidence, it will prosecute fly-tippers.
Oliver Sherratt, Durham County Council’s head of environment, said: "Our county is a beautiful place to live, work and visit, and we share the same aim as our communities in keeping it clean and litter-free.
"We have neighbourhood wardens dedicated to tackling fly-tipping, and after one of them reported this incident, our Clean and Green team attended and removed the waste the same day.
"If anyone has information about a fly-tipping incident, we encourage them to come forward and report it to us so that we can take action."
