An investigation has been launched into how fixtures and fittings from the Co-op’s Lewes Road branch ended up dumped in Sheepcote Valley.
Trolleys and shelves and other debris, including boxes marked Co-op Lewes Road and posters advertising Co-op deals, were fly-tipped earlier this week.
The Lewes Road branch has just moved from 56 to 58-62 Lewes Road, the site of the former Lewes Road Community Garden, to make way for a new student housing development.
The council and police are investigating, and the supermarket said it was speaking to its contractor. The council is clearing the site today.
A council spokesman said: “We are very aware of the ugly pile of rubbish at Sheepcote Valley and will be clearing the site tomorrow.
“Our environmental enforcement team is liaising with Sussex Police to locate and bring to justice the people responsible for this appalling mess.”
A spokesman for Co-op said: “We are investigating with our contractor how the materials came to be discarded and we are sorry that they were not correctly recycled or sent for disposal. Immediate steps have been taken for the materials to be collected.”
