Dumped and burned out cars are one of the first sights visitors to Ipswich see as they enter the town by train.Rusty wrecks have been dumped alongside the railway tracks in Bobbits Hole where their number is reported to have grown over recent weeks.

THIS eyesore is one of the first sights visitors to Ipswich see as they enter the town by train.

These rusty wrecks have been dumped alongside the railway tracks in Bobbits Hole where their number is reported to have grown over recent weeks.

Not only is the dumping of these vehicles visibly damaging but it creates an environmental nightmare for the animal and plant life in the area.

A spokeswoman for the Environment Agency said: "Abandoned cars present a growing menace to the environment. Not only are they an obvious visual eyesore affecting the amenity value of the local landscape but they also contain a number of hazardous materials such as oils, brakefluids and fuels.

"These cars tend to be very old, damaged or vandalised and so the risk of these materials escaping and polluting the environment, including watercourses and groundwaters, is that much higher. Some of the materials, such as fuels, are also highly flammable substances and so are obvious fire hazards."

Eighteen months ago the Evening Star reported a similar problem in the Bobbits Lane area, on the outskirts of Ipswich.

Now the problem has returned and has been highlighted today as part of the Evening Star's Dump the Dumpers campaign.

Sue Gibbs, technical officer waste management for Babergh district council said: "It is an ongoing problem. That area is covered by the Greenways project, they manage the area and we have a litter warden who calls there regularly.

"If there are burnt out cars they know about and they want assistance they tell us and we can deal with it in a big hit.

"Because it is such a volatile area it means major work is put in."

David Fincham, Greenways Project ranger, said there had been a problem in the area for more than 40 years and that work was being done to prevent fly tipping.

He said: "We have put a gate at the Wherstead end and have worked with the co-operation of interested parties including the landowners and Anglian Water (who have a building close to the site).

"Because it is a bridal way horses and pedestrians have to be allowed along it. If we gate the other end we may move the problem along to a more valuable area."

Mr Fincham stated that the problem lay 90 per cent with joy riders who dump the cars in Bobbits Hole. He also believes those involved may be attempting to get the cars onto the railway track.

But he said that the majority of these cars have been there for some time and it is by the sewage works in Bobbits Lane that the new cars arrive more frequently.

A meeting is currently being planned by the Greenways Project to discuss issues affecting the area with interested parties including the police.

N Do you know an area plagued by fly tipping? Write in to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich, IP4 1AN or email eveningstarletters@eveningstar.co.uk or visit the forum at www.eveningstar.co.uk