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A pair of individuals have been arrested as part of an investigation into the tipping of several thousand of tonnes of waste in a rural field in Oxfordshire.

Authorities stated that a 69-year-old was apprehended at a dwelling in the town of Andover, while a man in his fifties was taken into custody in the town of Slough in relation with the massive pile of waste deposited near the area of Kidlington.

These detentions follow a recent investigation which exposed the operation of in excess of 500 illegal dumps in the country of England, including at a minimum of 11 so-called "major sites" bigger than 20,000 tons.

A official for the environment body commented that the arrests were for ecological and proceeds of crime crimes and were a "vital step" in continuing inquiries. The apprehended men have been set free on conditional release.

Scale of the Problem

The dump in the Kidlington area, situated between the Cherwell River and the A34 road, is estimated to hold around 21,000 metric tons of rubbish in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) high.

This heap of rubbish is consists of what appears to be processed household waste, chopped up plastic items, polystyrene, tires and assorted everyday articles.

It constitutes just a single of 517 unlawful sites throughout England, at least 11 of which hold over 20,000 tons of garbage. They feature a 280,000-tonne location in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne areas in Lancashire and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The actual figure of such major dumps is expected to be greater, as the regulatory body has previously indicated it does not hold records on tonnage for every unauthorized dump.

A large proportion of these sites are in agricultural settings, often hidden, and on land that is intended to be farm ground.

Organised Activity

Authorities say numerous are run by organised crime gangs, who are making money by charging far less than legitimate operators to receive and dispose of rubbish.

Firms have to pay disposal fees to use lawful disposal sites, depending on the amount and category of refuse they are trying to dispose of, and a waste tax is also levied at just over £126 per ton.

Community Outrage

Initial work to clear the Kidlington area location commenced recently following fears over the threat of fire and the effect that would have on the close-by highway.

A contracted waste removal company has been given the contract to deal with the location over the following 12 months at a cost of £9.6m.

An investigations manager for the country's environmental crime division stated that the body would be aiming to recoup the remediation expenses under asset recovery laws from any individual successfully found guilty at the conclusion of its ongoing inquiry.

She added that this week's detentions would help "move the investigation forward" and allow authorities to "pursue more avenues to determine precisely what happened and who was involved".

"This unlawful dump at the site was an atrocious and intentional attack on our natural surroundings and we understand the community's frustration at this horrific offence," she said.

A senior representative welcomed the detentions, stating: "This illegal tipping of waste at the site is appalling and has led to substantial detriment to the natural world and anguish to the surrounding residents.

"Our authorities is dedicated to eliminating this kind of crime throughout the UK, by augmenting funds to tackle environmental crime, employing more personnel and introducing more severe measures and penalties for those who violate the regulations."

The apprehensions were made on a recent Thursday by agents from a specialist crime squad and follow an earlier detention of a 39-year-old from the Surrey region in the autumn. He was released pending additional inquiries.