Waste and broken equipment from illegal cannabis farms is increasingly being fly-tipped on land and farms, police in North Yorkshire have said.

Dead cannabis plants, lamps, wiring and tubs of fertiliser are among the waste being found dumped on rural land, and the force says it is becoming an increasingly-common occurrence.

North Yorkshire Police have now been carrying out surveys to find out the true extent of the problem, with 10 of the 75 respondents reporting seeing cannabis farm waste dumped at least once a year. One landowner who responded said they had seen drug dealers' waste fly-tipped once every two months.

In one scenario, a farmer in North Yorkshire who had found bags of compost for growing cannabis on his land resorted to opening them up and spreading them on his land to avoid the waste.

Picture issued by North Yorkshire Police of suspected cannabis farm waste dumped in a rural area near Northallerton

A recent Freedom of Information request submitted by The Yorkshire Post revealed only 13 cannabis farms were attended and dismantled by North Yorkshire Police between January of 2017 and of this year, suggesting some of the fly-tipped waste is from criminals from surrounding areas.

The police force is now ramping up responses to catch criminals in the act and prevent further environmental and economic damage inflicted by the waste – with rural residents using WhatsApp groups to tip off police abut suspicious activity, while patrols are increased in the countryside.

Pc Gemma Mumby said: “Fly-tipping causes disruption to farmers and rural businesses, blights our countryside, and is hazardous to wildlife and public health.

“Criminals involved in cannabis production see fly-tipping as an easy way to dump their waste, so it’s only by working together that we can stop them.

A cannabis farm discovered by police in Rotherham, showing the kind of equipment being increasingly found dumped in rural areas. Picture: South Yorkshire Police

“It’s really important that all incidents of fly-tipping are reported to the local authority. We work closely with councils, and forensic opportunities in cannabis waste could give us the chance to identify both fly-tippers and drug dealers.”

The impact can be huge on farmers and landowners, as councils will only pay to remove waste tipped on public land leaving private landowners to foot the bill themselves.

Police are also working with different local authorities as part of their response.

Hambleton District Council Leader, Coun Mark Robson, said: “The illegal dumping of cannabis farm and other waste across Hambleton is not only an unsightly blight on the landscape, it costs our council taxpayers tens of thousands of pounds a year.

Criminals running cannabis farms are fly-tipping their waste in rural farmland in North Yorkshire, say police