THE Government has pledged an extra £40m to help tackle the North-East's growing fridge mountain.

Local authorities have been forced to stockpile unwanted refrigerators and freezers.

New EU legislation requires that the CFC chemicals used in old fridges must be correctly disposed of because they damage the ozone layer.

Earlier this summer, Durham County Council became one of the first authorities in the country to sign a contract for the safe disposal of up to 18,000 fridges.

But, at a cost of £17 per fridge, the council reckons it may have to find more than £300,000 a year for the scheme to continue.

Last night, the Government gave in to intense lobbying by the Local Government Association (LGA).

It announced an extra £40m to help councils across the country deal with unwanted appliances.

Giving details of the cash boost, Environment Minister Michael Meacher paid tribute to authorities such as Durham that had already started to tackle the problem.

He said the extra £40m given by the Government would help local councils with the burden of storing, transporting and the safe recycling of fridges.

Ultimately, council chiefs hope the Government will force retailers to take in old fridges when they sell new ones, switching the burden to electrical stores and customers who will pay more for a new appliance.

Since old fridges started to build up earlier this year, local authorities have swung into action and come up with solutions that have stopped the problem getting out of hand.

Now that reprocessing sites have started coming on stream in the UK, it is expected that the "fridge mountains" will begin to diminish.

Councillor Kay Twitchen, chairwoman of the LGA's Waste Executive, said: "The minister's recognition of the efforts of local authorities is gratifying.

"The announcement of the funding is to be welcomed, and I particularly welcome that the Government has taken on board the findings and recommendations of the recent Environment Select Committee's report concerning the need for additional cash to tackle this fridge crisis.

"Although local authorities may not have got every penny they asked for, the important thing now is that the money goes to councils as soon as possible, so that they can get on with the job."