Every time we highlight the issue of flytipping we find ourselves asking, ‘why?’.

Why are people so ignorant that over the course of two decades a section of land near the Redbridge recycling centre, off Abingdon Road, has grown into a filthy pit the size of Oxford ice rink?

The dump was crammed full of broken fridges, freezers, mattresses and assorted household waste and crawling with vermin.

That it stood festering for so long in the shadow of a dedicated recycling centre is an irony completely lost on those who used it to throw away their rubbish.

At last, work has now started on clearing the mess up.

And the cost? A staggering £500,000 of taxpayers’money.

Of course, the clear-up operation has come as a great relief to those living nearby who have been pestering the council since day one for something to be done.

People who fling their waste away in such a careless manner – and in the knowledge that a recycling centre is just round the corner – should feel the full force of the law.