The council's Environmental Cleansing Manager Mike Poole arranged for the two litter-strewn roundabouts near MOTO and the new link road to be litterpicked and cleaned this week after the Wetherby News's Clean Up Our Countryside campaign highlighted the mountains of litter being left to simply rot in the area.

Mr Poole said: "I have now established that MOTO is actually in Harrogate Borough although it is only yards from our boundary with Leeds City Council.

"As the law stands, we could require MOTO to clean the street within 100 metres of their property but obviously we can not insist that they litterpick on the A1 or the busy roundabout over the A1 as this would be unsafe.

"I have arranged with a colleague from Leeds Enforcement Team that we will do a joint 'duty of care' visit to Moto as the litter is also spread south on the B1224 alongside the Young Offenders' Institution.

"If MOTO are found to be containing their waste securely then there is little that we will be able to do as they cannot reasonably be held responsible for people tossing their rubbish out of the car windows half a mile away.

"If they are not found to be containing their waste securely we can force them to clean up and control waste on their site."

Mr Poole added that he was hopeful MOTO would be prepared to contribute to a regular litter pick scheme with the local community following the duty of care visit.

"It would be nice if Kirk Deighton Parish Council or someone organised it on the road network around the station and MOTO provided refreshments and helped out in some way," he said.

"We've done the clean up this week but we need to find a way to keep on top of it that satisfies all parties."