Gangs litter the countryside with tyre dumps in recycling scam Criminal gangs are dumping the waste tyres, and smuggling millions more into Asia. As a result, many legitimate recycling firms are facing closure or making redundancies because of a shortage of tyres. Motorists usually pay garages a fee of between one and two pounds to have a tyre recycled, and then third parties are paid to dispose of them. But an investigation by the BBC's Panorama shows how criminals have been offering cheaper disposal rates, allowing rogue garages to pocket a bigger profit. As a result, vast illegal dumps have appeared throughout the country, including a site in the North East of England, where 300,000 tyres were abandoned in an industrial estate. Andy Higham, of the Environment Agency, told the programme: "We're talking about serious and organised criminals. These aren't people that just dump a few tyres. We're talking about major, major money that can actually be made from this type of illegal activity. Last year, an alleged illegal tyre dump in Swansea went up in flames, engulfing the city in toxic smoke. The programme will show how Amy and Steven Marlow, who ran a recycling scam in North Wales, dumped tens of thousands of tyres in a warehouse before fleeing to Majorca with approximately £15,000 in profits. Their scam left Maria Burt, the warehouse owner, with a bill of more than £30,000 for the clean-up operation. A further problem is that many of the tyres dumped on unsuspecting landowners are illegally exported to countries where they will be burnt in factories and workshops with few environmental controls. Shipping documents have revealed how waste tyres were being collected from four locations in Britain - Kidwelly, Carmarthen, Lichfield and Elsenham - and taken to Vietnam illegally.