A MIDDLESBROUGH demolition firm has been fined for illegally burning scrap and building debris.

The fine of £7,500, with £855 costs, which is the heaviest ever secured by Middlesbrough Council in an air pollution case, was imposed by Teesside magistrates.

A representative from A Buckler Demolition Limited, of Marsh Road, Middlesbrough, yesterday pleaded guilty to disposing of controlled waste in a manner likely to cause pollution.

A trail of black smoke alerted enforcement officers to the blaze in Vulcan Street, in the St Hilda's area of town, last September.

They found that the waste piled on the fire included girders, bricks and wood. It should all have been disposed of off-site by a registered waste contractor, the court was told.

Councillor Barry Coppinger, executive member for community safety, said: "I think most people would agree there is no excuse for what they did on this occasion. They showed absolutely no regard for the environment or the inconvenience they would have caused to other businesses nearby."