FLY tippers have caused £50,000 of damage at beauty spots in the shadow of Ben Nevis.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) said it will crackdown on persistent flytipping at an illegal site in Fort William and is working with the local community to catch the culprits.

Sepa officers from its waste crime team led a multi-agency operation involving Police Scotland and Highland Council at Mount Alexander, Camaghael.

A Sepa spokesman said: “Building and construction materials are among the various types of waste that have been accumulating at the illegal site in Camaghael for a considerable time.”

“It is evident that tradesmen in the area are persistently dumping waste materials at the site to avoid paying the cost of disposal at legitimate waste management sites. This is clearly for financial gain, with complete disregard for the law and the possible environmental consequences.”

“Visually, the illegal site is sharply at odds with the nearby areas of natural beauty.

“Remediation work for the site would undoubtedly incur significant costs and Sepa estimates that this could be as much as £50,000, depending on the types of waste involved”.

Sepa officers are also visiting local businesses to gather information, check permits and reinforce the responsibilities and obligations that apply to anyone producing, carrying or managing waste.

Sepa’s chief executive officer, Terry A’Hearn, said: “Compliance is not optional and tackling illegal waste management activities is one of our major priorities.

“Illegal dumping happens in both rural and urban areas and clearing it up costs Scottish local authorities more than £2.5 million each year. It also undermines legitimate waste businesses, where illegal operators undercut those operating legally.”

Sergeant Ewan Calder of the Police Scotland Road Policing Unit in Fort William, added: “Flytipping, particularly large household items on the street spoils the look of an area and can become a target for wilful fire raising and other associated criminality.

Local Councillor Allan Henderson, chair of Highland Council’s environment committee, said: “There is no excuse for flytipping anywhere in our region as Highland Council provides 21 recycling centres across the Highlands including one in Fort William.”