A DERELICT site that has become a fly-tipping hotspot will be cleaned up as soon as possible, it has been promised.

Bolton Council has served notice for the landowners of the old Daubhill rope works to remove a massive pile of rubbish from the site within 30 days.

If Akil Properties does not act, the council can then carry out the work itself and take the landowner to court to recover the costs.

A petition calling for the huge amount of waste to be removed was signed by 300 nearby residents, after strong winds blew down the fencing around the site and opened it to fly-tippers.

The Bolton News reported last month how neighbours had complained of rubbish “spewing out” of the site — which border Brandwood Street, Croston Street, Worsel Street, Daisy Street, and Dijon Street.

Nearby resident and Bolton Green Party leader, Alan Johnson, said: “It is a big mess there. And the rubbish is not just concentrated in one spot anymore, it is all over the site.

“We used to have people putting carpets, furniture, and bin bags in the back streets before.

“Suddenly, the streets are a lot cleaner but all of the rubbish is collecting on the rope works. The problem hasn’t gone away, it has just moved from one spot to another.

“I feel sorry for the poor residents who live next to the site because they walk out of their back gates and have this huge mess right in front of them.

“The petition to get the site cleaned up has been signed by 300 people, it has become a massive issue.

“I am glad that action is being taken, but it should not need residents to take this kind of action for something to be done.

“The area needs to be cleaned up urgently and I hope the situation will be resolved soon.”

Cllr Nick Peel, the council’s executive cabinet member for environmental services, has called on private landowners to step up and take more responsibility.

He said: “If they don’t clean up the site then the council can move in and do the work, then claim back the costs in court.

“One way or another, this site will be cleaned up and we will be speaking to the landowners about their responsibilities.

“Private landowners need to step up and understand that it is their responsibility to ensure their land is maintained to a good standard.”

Shortly before fly-tippers began targeting the land, schoolchildren from nearby Brandwood Community Primary School had helped collect 100 bags of rubbish from streets in the area.

Akil Properties, whose registered address is in Portland Street, Halliwell, could not be contacted for a comment.