Angry residents are calling for an urgent clean-up of the M20 as bags full of rubbish still litter the carriageway - days after Operation Stack was lifted.

Motorists have spotted "huge piles" of litter between Junction 10a for Ashford and Junction 13 for Folkestone, sparking fears over the impact on the environment.

The stretch was closed over Christmas to allow for scores of lorries to be queued up in Operation Stack, but the route reopened to drivers earlier this week.

Folkestone resident Mike Bramley says he "cannot understand" why the litter has been left at the roadside, describing it as a "horrendous mess".

"This is a complete eye-sore and dangerous - this is the Garden of England," he said.

"It does not make for a very good impression for travellers let alone the local people seeing all this rubbish."

Motorist Lisa Harvey agreed, saying: "Surely if this doesn't get removed soon we will be overwhelmed with rats and more seagulls in Ashford. Next year: bubonic plague!"

Mersham resident Linda Arthur - whose fellow villagers lowered food from bridges to the stranded truckers before Christmas - says she is concerned about the impact on wildlife and the contamination of nearby streams.

"I have heard the drivers were told to deposit rubbish in certain piles, but of course the adverse weather during the storm has spread the rubbish further into the vegetation," she said.

"Many villages are affected along the length of the M20 to Dover.

"We must be better prepared for this situation, which potentially could arise over the coming days, weeks and maybe months... rubbish containers must be provided and adequate toilet facilities.

"There is already extreme negative ecological pressure on our countryside here in this part of Kent, caused by the Sevington Inland Border Facility. We must mitigate the detrimental effect where we can."

Mandy Rossi, co-chairman of the Ashford Green Party, shares Mrs Arthur's concerns over the environmental impact of the rubbish.

"The lorry drivers found themselves in a very difficult situation, many of them having been stuck on the motorway for days," she said.

"While I can’t condone littering, I can certainly in this instance forgive - I think we have a tendency to judge too quickly on social media.

"Imagine living in your cab, and all that litter is piling up around you.

"And you’re having to not only spend all day in it, but sleep in that environment too.

"I know the majority of drivers get rid of their rubbish responsibly at service stations, but in this situation, they didn’t know when they’d next arrive at one.

"It was Christmas, people were coming together to donate food, drinks and showers and we once again saw the community at its best."

Ms Rossi, who helps run the Wombles of Willesborough litter-picking group, says she was delighted to see residents supporting the truckers.

She added: "I’m disappointed rubbish has been left, but ultimately, I’m glad the drivers were shown compassion by Ashford, and instead of criticising others, let's take New Year to reflect on our own litter habits.

"I’d love for Wombles of Willesborough and all the other groups to not be necessary, and that we all care about our environment and wildlife a little more."

Highways England - which is responsible for clearing up the rubbish - says its cleaning teams collected more than 750 bags of waste from a six-mile stretch between Junction 8 for Leeds Castle and Junction 9 for Ashford.

It added: "We’re working hard to clear rubbish from the M20 - we’ve almost completed the section between Junctions 8 and 9 and teams will be working on the section between Junction 10a and 13 this coming week.

“We’re carefully managing the clearance so it can be done in a way which both ensure roadworkers’ safety and limits the impact on traffic.

“And we will continue to monitor and manage any build-up of litter to try and keep it to an absolute minimum.”

Earlier this week, all coastbound slip roads leading onto the M20 finally reopened, sparking relief among drivers.

Read more: All the latest news from Ashford