CONCERNS have been raised after a large amount of laboratory waste was apparently dumped in a back street in Bradford city centre.

One local resident said despite a prompt response from the Council when he initially reported the problem, the fly-tipped "bio-waste" has now remained on land off the unmarked road - situated between Bolton Road and Canal Road - for nearly two weeks.

The items include a range of bottles filled with cloudy liquid, and an array of petri dishes, many with some form of material growing in them.

A nearby resident who first reported the issue, but did not wish to be named, said a local council warden and a member of the authority's environmental health team had visited the site later the same day.

He said that after examining the pile of items, which appear to have no labels on to trace where they may have come from, the environmental health officer described them as "unpleasant, but not dangerous."

The resident said the laboratory items were dumped at the same time as a load of building waste, and claimed the level of fly-tipping in the area was on the up.

"People drive down the lane and the rubbish just steadily accumulates," he said.

"I was quite scared to discover the lab waste, as there was no idea of knowing what was growing in the broth in the bottles.

"Bio-waste is not what you expect to find on your doorstep.

"I am concerned that it sets a very dangerous precedent for fly-tipping.

"People's attitude to waste in Bradford is dragging the city down, which is a real shame.

"We need to clean the place up, and everyone needs to join in and take responsibility.

"The fact this has happened is indicative of the contempt some people seem to have for this city."

The man said it was unclear whether the land where the waste has been dumped was classed as private or not, adding he had made attempts to find the possible owner as well as alerting the Council.

Councillor Nazam Azam (Lab, City) said he had not been made aware of any laboratory waste being dumped, or of an increase of fly-tipping on the site in question.

"If council officers know about this and it needs addressing, then I'm sure it will be," he said.

"If it had been posing an immediate danger, it would have been cleared already.

"I was not aware of a particular fly-tipping problem in that spot, but it's a pity someone has decided to dispose of such waste in this way, in an area close to where people live."

No-one from either the neighbourhood or environmental health teams at Bradford Council was available to comment on the issue yesterday.