'No excuse': East Lothian Council warn flytippers after heaps of rubbish dumped at abandoned site

East Lothian Council have hit out at flytippers after heaps of rubbish were dumped at the former Raceland site in Tranent.

Raceland closed in 2018 (Pic: Aaron Howard Robertson)

Huge piles of rubbish including wood and tyres which have been flytipped were spotted at the former Raceland site in Gladsmuir, Tranent on the evening of Tuesday July 7.

East Lothian council deal with hundreds of cases of flytipping each year and this month The Woodland Trust have warned that huge increase in litter and fly-tipping in woodlands during lockdown is harming the countryside and putting nature at risk.

The coronavirus pandemic saw recycling centres across the country closed and East Lothian residents were urged to act sensibly amid concerns there could be ‘a spate’ of fly-tipping incidents.

The rubbish was seen at the former Raceland site (Pic: Aaron Howard Robertson)

At the beginning of last month, all four East Lothian recycling centres in Dunbar, Macmerry, North Berwick and Kinwegar, near Wallyford reopened with social distancing measures in place and East Lothian council have warned that there is ‘no excuse’ for flytipping.

A spokeswoman for East Lothian Council said: “This is a privately owned site and the council will advise the owners about the flytipped materials and access to the site.

“There is no excuse for flytipping as there are both household and commercial waste sites available across the Lothians and East Lothian Council will take appropriate enforcement action against any identified flytippers.”

Flytipping is a criminal offence and can carry fines and lead to a jail sentence.