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Two individuals have been arrested as a component of an inquiry into the illegal deposit of several thousand of tonnes of rubbish in a rural field in Oxfordshire.

Law enforcement indicated that a man in his late sixties was arrested at a dwelling in Hampshire's Andover, while a 54-year-old was arrested in the town of Slough in relation with the enormous heap of waste dumped near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These apprehensions occur a week after a previous report which revealed the existence of over 500 illegal tips throughout England, encompassing at minimum 11 so-called "super sites" bigger than 20,000 tonnes.

A spokeswoman for the regulatory authorities stated that the apprehensions were for ecological and proceeds of crime crimes and were a "key step" in ongoing investigations. Both men have been let go on pre-trial release.

Scale of the Situation

The dump in near Kidlington, located between the Cherwell River and the A34 highway, is estimated to house approximately 21,000 tons of waste in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) lengthwise and 6m (20ft) high.

This heap of garbage is made up of what appears to be sorted residential rubbish, fragmented plastics, expanded polystyrene, tyres and assorted household articles.

It is just one example of 517 unauthorized tips throughout the country, at a minimum of 11 of which contain in excess of 20,000 tons of garbage. They include a 280,000-tonne site in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire county and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne tip in Kent.

The total amount of such major locations is likely to be higher, as the environmental agency has in the past stated it does not maintain information on tonnage for all illegal dump.

The majority sites are in rural areas, typically hidden, and on land that is zoned as farm land.

Organised Enterprise

Law enforcement state numerous are managed by criminal organizations, who are generating money by asking for far less than licensed companies to receive and bury waste.

Companies have to incur gate fees to use legitimate landfill sites, depending on the amount and nature of waste they are trying to discard, and a disposal levy is also charged at just over £126 per ton.

Local Frustration

Preparatory operations to clear the Kidlington area dump commenced in recent weeks due to concerns over the threat of fire and the effect that would have on the adjacent A-road.

A private waste removal contractor has been given the contract to remediate the area over the coming 12 months at a price of £9.6m.

An investigations officer for the government environment division said that the body would be looking to recover the remediation expenses under asset recovery laws from anyone found guilty at the termination of its active case.

She further stated that the recent detentions would help "move the inquiry forward" and allow the agency to "follow more leads to ascertain precisely what happened and who was implicated".

"This unauthorized tip at this location was an shocking and calculated assault on our environment and we understand the community's frustration at this egregious act," she remarked.

A senior official praised the actions, commenting: "The illegal deposit of garbage at the site is utterly appalling and has led to substantial damage to the natural world and distress to the nearby residents.

"Our administration is pledged to stamping out this category of illegal activity in the UK, by augmenting resources to address environmental crime, employing more officers and implementing more severe controls and fines for those who break the law."

The arrests were carried out on Thursday by personnel from a dedicated serious crime team and come after an earlier detention of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area region in the autumn. He was set free awaiting further enquiries.