Those in environmental health jobs will benefit from a new piece of technology that can search for illegally-buried waste.
The Environment Agency has started using the technology, which allows its users to map what materials are buried underground, in a bid to halt activity by serious waste criminals.
Dr Paul Leinster, the Environment Agency's chief executive, said he hopes the technology will help criminals be "caught, prosecuted and made to pay for the clean-up".
"By dumping waste illegally, waste criminals avoid landfill charges and undercut legitimate waste businesses, but more importantly they put the environment and human health at risk," he explained.
Dr Leinster went on to say that individuals in environmental health jobs are helping to catch the criminals, while the agency will be doing all it can to confiscate their assets.
Since 2008, 1,500 illegal waste sites have been closed by the Environment Agency.
Elsewhere, the Lancashire Evening Post reports that instances of fly-tipping in Preston have increased by 50 per cent compared to levels recorded in 2006.
