More than 2,000 bags of cannabis plant waste has been dumped in a North Yorkshire town so far this year

Tyne Tees
Hambleton
cannabis
fly-tipping
Monday 16 December 2019 at 4:14pm

More than 2,000 bags of waste associated with cannabis production has been dumped in a North Yorkshire town so far this year.

The council and North Yorkshire Police are working together to try a find those responsible after a series of large scale flytips.

Most recently, 61 bags worth of cannabis plant remnants and equipment used to grow the illegal plant were found dumped near Hutton Rudby. It brings the total number of bin bags collected so far this year up to 2024 bags. They had been left in hedgerows across the district.

Police say, given the amount of waste, it must have been transported in a van or pick up before being flytipped.

This problem has been escalating for almost a year. We believe a good deal of it is coming from large scale cannabis operations outside of the district and being dumped where the criminals think it will remain unnoticed. We urge the public to be extra vigilant and if they see anything suspicious report it to either us or the police. Under no circumstances should members of the public try to tackle someone acting suspiciously. The police are also asking anyone in the North Yorkshire or Cleveland area to report any suspicious activity around industrial units, factory buildings or farm buildings that may be used for cannabis production. They say the signs to look out for include a pungent smell, covered windows, lights on all the time, the buzz of ventilation / fans whirring, people coming and going at all hours, condensation, excessive security and heat escape – snow/frost melts quickly on the roof."

Chief Inspector Emma Aldred of North Yorkshire Police, added: