Burnt-out car wrecks moved from beauty spot

A burnt-out car is removed from Eston Hills

Burnt-out car wrecks have been removed from a beauty spot as part of efforts to improve woodland.

Eston Hills in Teesside has been blighted in recent years by anti-social behaviour, with vehicles illegally driven there, abandoned and set on fire.

Off-road bikes are another frequent problem in the area.

Redcar and Cleveland Council leader Alec Brown expressed his “huge thanks” to those helping to restore “our beloved Eston Hills”.

In 2022, the Local Democracy Reporting Service reported on the frustrations expressed by the Friends of Eston Hills over abandoned cars.

Its secretary, Maggie Gavaghan, described the area as the “most beautiful place on earth”.

However, she pointed out new ditches, fencing and bollards were sometimes circumvented by persistent vandalism.

'Dry summers'

Marske-based construction firm AJH Group has been repairing footpaths for Tees Valley Wildlife Trust and recently helped to remove the burnt-out shell of a vehicle.

Meanwhile the trust, which manages the Lazenby Bank nature reserve, has restored deciduous trees in place of some conifer plantations.

Steve Ashton, the trust's people and wildlife manager, said: “After a quarter of a century of neglect, the conifer plantations at Lazenby have a poor diversity of plants and animal life, and they have proved vulnerable to pests and diseases.

“Recent hot, dry summers have seen outbreaks of fire in these areas too, and this has added to the urgency of restoring and maximising the ecological integrity and resilience of this incredible woodland.”

Work on the footpaths was delayed by one of the wettest winters for many years.

Mr Ashton added: “Quite a lot of the pathwork is now complete, but in the long term we will be doing more work to improve the area for people and wildlife.”