Southport fly-tippers have been warned by Sefton Council to stop dumping their rubbish or face being fined.
Environmental Health Enforcement officers from the local authority carried out a spot-check across the borough recently as part of a crackdown on residents leaving their trash in alleyways.
Officials caught one woman, in Bootle, and handed her a fine of £400.
Each year, Sefton’s cleansing teams have to remove thousands of tonnes of rubbish from alley- ways across the borough, which costs the council £800,000 to clear up.
On average 20 tonnes of fly-tipped rubbish is left in rear alleyways and passageways each week, running up bills of £2,600 in disposal costs alone.