What a midden: Clear-up planned for fly-tipping hotspot

The new owner of land prone to fly-tipping wants to begin a clear up and transformation of the ‘Middleston Midden’.

For the past decade, the site at Mitchelston Industrial Estate’s Myregormie Place in Kirkcaldy, Fife, has been empty – and it has become a hotspot for dumping rubbish.

Litter currently lies across the vast wasteland of debris which was once home to the Production Glassfibre factory.

New owner, North Star Storage director Tim Reid, has now lodged a planning application to install a new fence around the dilapidated site and change the use of the land.

Mr Reid who bought the site three weeks ago, wants to transform the land into a new storage facility for private individuals and small businesses.

The planning application also proposes to erect heavy duty aluminium gates and a spiked fence around the 350 sq m site to protect it from future fly-tippers.

Mr Reid said: “We bought the land three weeks ago and we’re really keen to get it tidied up.

“It’s a good site on a nice industrial estate. Unfortunately, people have taken advantage of the fact that it’s been vacant for some time and have been using it for fly-tipping.

“We are very much hoping that the new use of the site will be a considerable benefit for the locals in the area and the environment generally.”

Mr Reid hopes Fife Council will quickly approve the plans so that the transformation of the site can start as soon as possible.

Dawn Jamieson from the local authority said: “Unfortunately, in these challenging times, when our services are already under pressure, there are a growing number of reports of fly tipping around Fife.

“Everyone is responsible for their own waste and must dispose of their rubbish responsibly.”

Story by local democracy reporter Hannah Brown