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A pair of individuals have been arrested as a component of an investigation into the tipping of several thousand of metric tons of waste in a rural field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Law enforcement reported that a 69-year-old was apprehended at a dwelling in the town of Andover, while a man in his fifties was detained in the town of Slough in relation with the enormous heap of rubbish tipped near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These apprehensions occur a week after a previous investigation which exposed the presence of more than 500 unauthorized dumps throughout the country of England, encompassing at minimum 11 so-called "major sites" greater than 20,000 metric tons.

A representative for the regulatory agency stated that the detentions were for environment-related and financial crimes and represented a "key step" in ongoing inquiries. The two individuals have been let go on pre-trial release.

Scale of the Issue

The illegal site in near Kidlington, located between the Cherwell River and the A34 road, is believed to contain around 21,000 tonnes of waste in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) tall.

This heap of rubbish is composed of what looks to be sorted household waste, fragmented plastic materials, expanded polystyrene, tyres and other domestic objects.

It represents just one example of 517 illegal dumps in England, at a minimum of 11 of which contain more than 20,000 metric tons of waste. They feature a 280,000-tonne location in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire county and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne tip in Kent.

The total amount of such bigger dumps is likely to be greater, as the environmental body has earlier stated it does not hold data on volume for each unauthorized dump.

The majority such locations are in countryside settings, often concealed, and on land that should be farm property.

Criminal Activity

Law enforcement report a significant number are operated by organized crime groups, who are generating cash by demanding significantly less than lawful firms to receive and landfill waste.

Businesses have to pay gate fees to use licensed waste facilities, based on the volume and type of waste they are trying to dispose of, and landfill tax is also levied at just over £126 per ton.

Local Outrage

Preparatory work to clean up the affected site started earlier this month due to concerns over the risk of blaze and the impact that would have on the close-by highway.

A private clean-up company has been granted the job to handle the site over the coming 12 months at a cost of £9.6m.

An compliance official for the national environment division commented that the authority would be aiming to recover the clearance funds under asset recovery legislation from any party convicted at the conclusion of its active inquiry.

She added that this week's arrests would help "move the probe forward" and allow authorities to "pursue more lines of inquiry to determine in detail what occurred and who was a party to it".

"The illegal dump at this location was an appalling and deliberate attack on our natural surroundings and the authorities empathize with the public's frustration at this terrible offence," she said.

A cabinet official welcomed the detentions, commenting: "This unauthorized dumping of rubbish at this location is disgraceful and has resulted in considerable detriment to the natural world and anguish to the local residents.

"Our authorities is pledged to eliminating this category of criminality across the country, by augmenting funds to address waste crime, hiring more staff and implementing stricter measures and fines for those who break the rules."

The detentions were carried out on a recent Thursday by officers from a dedicated serious crime unit and come after an earlier detention of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area area in last November. He was set free subject to additional investigations.