TOUGHER rules are being introduced at a Teesside dump.

The Environment Agency yesterday granted a Pollution Prevention and Control permit to operator Able UK Holdings for its site at Seaton Meadows, Hartlepool.

Tougher rules mean the site can only accept non-hazardous waste from domestic, commercial and industrial premises, asbestos and stable non-reactive hazardous waste.

No reactive hazardous waste will be allowed to be disposed of at the site.

All landfill sites across England and Wales will eventually switch over to the new rules, bringing existing sites into line with the EU regulations.

Agency environment manager Bob Pailor said: "This new legislation is much tougher, requiring operators such as Able to pay even greater attention to the potential environmental impact of their operations.

"As part of the permit application process, we reviewed, in detail, all the issues which concern local residents and other interested parties."

The new regime is not related to the estimated multi-million pound cost of removing zinc and arsenic from land underneath houses at nearby Seaton Carew, thought to be the residue from ash dumped there from cokeworks.