A CLEAN-UP operation at Dale Farm has begun to clear asbestos from the former traveller site.
The work, which started on Monday and will last a week, will clear debris from a small part of the six acre Green Belt site in Crays Hill.
This follows a fire last year which destroyed an old industrial unit and damaged roofing sheets made of asbestos.
The clean-up follows the 2011 eviction of 80 traveller families who had been living on the site without planning permission.
A cesspool overflow will also be prevented from polluting a nearby ditch.
A contractor working on behalf of the council is carrying out the work at the site.
Representatives of the traveller community have been informed about these works, which are necessary to minimise risks to public health.
Council leader Tony Ball, said: "The council issued formal notices and reminders last year, however these have been ignored.
"The council now have no choice but to act and do this work now to address the health issues and then seek to recover the costs from the landowners concerned."
