COUNCILS across the region are calling for financial help from the Government in a bid to cope with thousands of unwanted fridges.

It is already feared that new European legislation on the disposal of insulating foam, as well as ozone-damaging chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), in the appliances will force authorities to stockpile fridges and could lead to a big increase in fly-tipping in the region's countryside.

This will cause storage and clean-up costs to soar to thousands of pounds a year and place added pressure on a number of councils, which are already short of cash.

The problem is being caused by the adoption of EU legislation which, from January 1, will require stricter disposal of domestic fridges and freezers. No facilities to carry out the removal process exist in the UK.

Scrap dealers who were able to cope with present legislation - requiring CFCs to be removed only from cooling circuits of fridges - will stop taking them.

Many local authorities provide a free disposal service for fridges, but fear the new requirement will mean they have to be stockpiled until facilities become available.

Retailers may also end trade-in schemes as the onus will be on them to dispose correctly of the CFCs, leading to more fridges being passed on to local authorities.

Keith Atkinson, assistant director of public protection at Darlington Borough Council, said it was envisaging a big problem.

He said that, like many authorities, it had not budgeted to cope with an increase in fridges and would need cash from the Government to help with storage costs.

"I expect that we will need additional money because this will cost authorities thousands," he said.

A spokesman for the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: "Up until now, old fridges that are in good working order have been sent to third world countries.

"Now the EC has suddenly said that the foam in fridges must also be taken out as well as the CFCs, and fridges cannot be broken up with the foam in them.

"The UK is not geared up yet for this, but we will be in around three to six months," he said.

"We want retailers to continue taking away second hand fridges when they deliver new ones and arranging with the council for storage until they can be safely disposed of.