A FED-UP resident has hit out, claiming council workers have left debris and discarded materials on his land.

Christopher Cottage is furious and claims the authority has tried to wash its hands of the problem.

Mr Cottage, who lives in Pound Lane, Bowers Gifford, told the Echo he was appalled at how he believes he has been treated.

He said: “The wind just didn’t blow it over. They really can’t treat people like this.”

He also claimed: “They told me that it would only cost £200 to remove, I shouldn’t have to remove their mess.

“I’m lucky in that I know what I’m doing, I can stand up for myself.”

Mr Cottage also alleges he has been threatened and claimed: “They’re doing it out of spite and taking me for a mug, to be honest.

“They think they’re the big boys and can just push their residents to one side.

“They actually threatened to make me bankrupt, they are so nasty.”

Basildon Council was contacted repeatedly for comment over a number of days by the Echo, but no response or explanation was offered on the situation or the disagreement with Mr Cottage.

The 65-year-old claimed the animosity initially arose when he became embroiled in a land dispute with the authority.

He claimed: “There was a dispute over the land a couple of years ago.

“We used to jointly own the land so we could both build on it, but they jacked that in and then suddenly said there was an issue with the boundaries.

“The mess is from the work they did to put a new fence in.

“They’ve just bulldozed their way through and left the debris and rubble behind.”

He added: “The builders levelled off the ground and didn’t clear up after themselves. It’s been there for months and months. They’re actually flytipping.

“If I did this, then I would be getting a hefty fine.”

He added: “I had a call from them admitting their mistake for building the new fence too high, it was meant to be six feet, not seven. It’s breaching their planning application.

“They could have just left the old one in. I had plans drawn up for our joint venture, but they just ignored them and did it themselves, without telling me.

“I then had plans to build two semi-detached houses on the land, but now that’s out of the window. I’m now in the process of clearing the whole thing.”