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have fuelled a crisis across the UK, experts have warned. The countryside is increasingly being scarred by illegal waste dumping, which costs landowners and local authorities millions of pounds each year.

Local authorities dealt with 1.15million in 2023-24, a 6% increase from the previous year's 1.08million. While some fly-tipping is done by individuals, it is often carried out by operating in groups.

As far back as 2018, then environment secretary Michael Gove said: "Criminals are running illegal waste sites as a cover for theft, human trafficking, drug running and money laundering."

Consumers often unknowingly contribute to illegal waste dumping by paying for services from unregulated or unauthorised waste carriers, who unload the rubbish in country lanes and farmland.

Illegal fly-tipping impacts two-thirds of farmers, the National Farmers' Union (NFU) has said.

Rachel Hallos, vice-president of the NFU, said: "Fly-tipping is a serious and growing problem in the countryside, blighting rural areas, endangering livestock and costing farmers time and money to clear up.

"We support stronger enforcement, including the power to seize and crush vehicles, but this must be backed by increased prosecutions and proper resourcing for councils.

"A single reporting system would make a real difference, reducing the burden on victims. And while some areas see good collaboration between police, local authorities, landowners and the Environment Agency, we need that joined-up approach on prevention, clean-up and prosecution everywhere.

"It's vital that government works with farmers and growers to deliver a consistent and properly resourced approach to tackling fly-tipping - one that supports victims rather than penalising them."

The number of prosecution actions has decreased by 5% from 1,681 in 2022-23 to 1,598 in 2023-24.

The ability for councils to increase the maximum fly-tipping fixed-penalty notice from £400 to £1,000 was granted under Rishi Sunak's Conservative government in 2023.

In the most serious cases, people can be jailed.

Mo Metcalf-Fisher, external affairs director at the Countryside Alliance, said: "Fly-tipping is a horrendous crime that blights urban and rural areas alike. It isn't just a danger to human beings, but massively harms nature and the environment.

"It goes far beyond chucking a cigarette butt out the window: it is often linked to organised crime, with rogue waste collectors dumping huge mountains of filth wherever they can- often in farmers fields.

"This comes at a huge cost to the farmer, not just financially, but mentally. While harsher penalties are needed, there's a huge amount the public can do to help clamp down on these criminals. When looking for a waste collector, it is your responsibility to check they have a valid waste management licence. You can do this easily by visiting the Environment Agency website. Failure to do so could land you in court."

A spokesman for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: "Waste criminals and fly-tippers who blight our villages and undermine our hard working farmers have gone unpunished for too long. This Government is cracking down on cowboy waste operators, including seizing and crushing fly-tippers vans to clean up Britain's rural areas and support our crucial farming sector."