Damage from 'disgusting' fly-tippers exceeds £500k

Work to clear up tyres and oil dumped by "disgusting" fly-tippers is expected to cost upwards of £500,000, a National Highways boss has said.

The spill was discovered beside the A14 north of Woodford in Northamptonshire and was reported to authorities on 28 December 2025.

The Environment Agency estimated that the dumped oil was comparable to "1,000 bathtubs" and work was expected to continue for several weeks to restore the area.

Ian Doust, National Highways programme development manager, said "tens of thousands" had already been spent on clearing up the damage and that there was a "much bigger hidden cost that we haven't been able to work out".

"This takes people away from their normal jobs," he added.

"Every pound we spend here clearing up after this person [fly-tipper] is money we can't spend on potholes, grass cutting, litter clearing and all of the other work we have to do."

He said: "We can only spend every pound once.

"Taxpayers are paying for this, this has just come from someone who didn't want to pay their landfill licence."

Heavy rain so far this year has hampered the clean-up operation and containment booms were put in place in a bid to prevent the oil spilling into the River Nene.

Work is now ongoing to clear trees and scrape soil away so it can be decontaminated.

Doust said that the agency was working to avoid its "worst fear" of the spill having caused structural damage to the A14, which could see a lane on the westbound carriageway closed for access and additional work.

He added: "It's disgusting. How anybody could think this is an acceptable way to behave... I just can't get my head around it at all."

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