WORK to deal with one of the district’s worst spots for fly tipping has taken place in the past few days - with over five waggons of waste removed from a river bank.

The Aire Rivers Trust has been able to install fencing alongside North Beck in Keighley thanks to a grant from the Gannett Foundation - the charitable arm of the Telegraph & Argus’ parent company.

The fence was needed due to the number of fly tipping incidents in the area.

Over several years items like office chairs, furniture, electrical goods and toys have been thrown over the wall that separates Mohair Street from the steep banks leading to the beck.

The land is unregistered, meaning it is not the responsibility of any one group or individual.

The Trust said the fly tipping was “detrimental to the people and wildlife of the area and poses a risk to flooding.”

The charity successfully applied for Gannett funding, and in the most recent round of grants had been awarded a £9,000 to tackle the problem.

GALLERY: River charity plans to clear up one of worst spots for fly tipping in the district

Earlier this year submitted a planning application to install a 45 metre long, 2.7 metre tall fence along the bank to deter fly tippers.

The trust admitted that installing a large fence along the waterway was not ideal - but that the fly tipping had become such an issue that it was the only option.

Earlier this month planning officers approved the application, saying: “Although the proposed fence is of a significant length and height, it is considered that the development is essential to maintain the visual amenity of the area.

“The visual impact of the fence significantly outweighs the benefits it provides in preventing the excessive fly tipping which has occurred on the site.”

Last week work was done to install the fence, and to remove the huge amounts of fly tipping from the banks of the beck.

Around 25 people, including contractors and members of the Trust, descended on the site for the works.

After days of clearing fly tipping they had collected over five waggon loads of waste, some of which may date back decades.

River stewardship experts were also called in to access some of the more treacherous areas of the bank.

Nick Milson from the Trust said: “The bank was covered with household waste, anything and everything you could name, it was there.

“It looked like some of it was commercial waste too - everyone has had a go over the years.”

He said the land now seemed very bare, but nature would now have the chance to thrive on the banks of the beck.