Huge piles of rubbish have been dumped at spots around Thanet - including an old bathroom, sofas and a TV.

In Reading Street in Broadstairs, fly-tipped waste was left on farmland, while in Cliftonville a shocking mountain of rubbish was piled up by the recycling depot and old coach park.

Thanet District Council is currently trying to find the Broadstairs culprit and confirmed that the authority's Streetscene team is aware of the Cliftonville site, which the authority says is regularly cleared.

Cllr Bob Bayford, cabinet member for operational services, says fly-tipping is a senseless and infuriating act which comes at a cost to the council taxpayers of Thanet.

"Investigating and clearing fly-tips costs us hundreds of thousands of pounds each year and diverts resources away from keeping the rest of the environment in Thanet clean," he said.

"Not to mention the terrible damage this causes to the natural environment and wildlife, disruption to private landowners and nearby residents.

"Our Streetscene enforcement officers are working every day to tackle this illegal activity and acted promptly to investigate the fly-tip at Reading Street once it was reported.

"The waste has now been removed, but we would urge anyone who might have seen the waste being dumped, or if they have any other information on who might be responsible to contact us so we can pursue a criminal investigation."

Cllr Bayford says it is important to remind members of the public that they must use registered waste carriers to dispose of large items of household waste so their waste is not fly-tipped.

"If illegally fly-tipped waste can be traced back to them, then they may be the one receiving a fine," he said.

"There is CCTV in known hotspots across the district which supports the work our team does on a daily basis to investigate these crimes.

"The council also regularly uses signs, leaflets and social media to remind residents and local businesses that fly-tipping is illegal and can lead to a £400 fixed penalty notice or a criminal prosecution."

But a spokesman for Friends of Cliftonville Coastline, says the recycling depot next to Bethesda Medical Centre in Cliftonville and the old coach park - made famous by iconic scenes in Only Fools and Horses - is continuously blighted by poor management.

"Despite numerous requests from residents to ensure that the depo is adequately cleared and fines implemented for flytipping, this beautiful spot on our coastline continues to be an environmentally polluting eyesore," she said.

"It is TDC’s responsibility to look after our protected coastline and ensure it is not polluted. TDC must create a strategy to ensure that waste does not blow into the old coach park, where it collects against the fencing and then blows into the sea in high winds.

"The concern is that this Christmas we will witness the same scenes as last Christmas, when there were completely inadequate collections and the coastline suffered immensely.

"One major contributory factor is the lack of recycling given to flats in Thanet.

"So as more people attempt to recycle, the communal facilities are proving massively inadequate, and that is something that urgently needs addressing."

To report fly-tipping use the council's online form.