LOCAL farmers are facing pollution risks and having to pick up huge bills from people fly-tipping on their land.

The county is the black spot in the West Midlands for people illegally dumping rubbish on agricultural land.

Out of 102 recorded incidents in the region, forty were in Herefordshire. The next highest figure was 12, in the Dudley area of the Black Country.

But experts warn these figures are just the tip of the iceberg.

And farmers are ending up paying the price, having to fork out an average £1,000 from their own pockets to clear up the mess each time.

New figures from the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) show that out of the 59,593 flytipping incidents in the region last year, 102 were reported on agricultural land.

It means the county suffered almost 40% of all the agricultural fly-tipping in the region.

But Charlotte Wilson, of Farmers and Mercantile Insurance Brokers (FMIB), said the true scale is not reflected in the figures, as they exclude the majority of private-land incidents.

As well as paying out to clean up the mess, farmers are also liable if the rubbish damages the countryside.

Flytipping isn't only a eyesore, it can cause pollution and harm to humans, animals and the environment.

Apart from everyday household waste, thousands of incidents involve asbestos, clinical waste and chemical and fuel waste.