Toxic waste lies beneath schools and homes, UK landfill map shows

Experts say council funding shortfalls mean many old landfills not being dealt with appropriately

Hundreds of landfills around the UK containing hazardous waste are located beneath green spaces, schools and housing, analysis of official data has found.

Experts say authorities are setting themselves up for a large sequence of nasty surprises" if the toxic substances were to escape, with council funding shortfalls meaning many sites are not being dealt with appropriately. The contents of hundreds of sites remain unknown even to the Environment Agency (EA).