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Two individuals have been taken into custody as part of an probe into the tipping of many thousands of tonnes of rubbish in a rural field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Officials stated that a 69-year-old was detained at a dwelling in Andover, Hampshire, while a 54-year-old was detained in Slough, Berkshire in association with the enormous heap of rubbish tipped near Kidlington.

These detentions follow a previous investigation which revealed the operation of in excess of 500 illegal sites throughout England, including at minimum 11 so-called "large-scale sites" bigger than 20,000 metric tons.

A spokeswoman for the environment authorities said that the arrests were for environment-related and financial crimes and constituted a "vital step" in active investigations. The apprehended men have been set free on conditional release.

Scale of the Situation

The tipping ground in Kidlington, located between the Cherwell River and the A34, is thought to house approximately 21,000 metric tons of rubbish in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) tall.

This heap of garbage is made up of what seems to be processed domestic rubbish, chopped up plastic materials, polystyrene, tires and various household items.

It is just one of 517 unlawful tips in England, at minimum 11 of which contain more than 20,000 metric tons of garbage. These include a 280,000-tonne area in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne areas in Lancashire and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne site in the county of Kent.

The actual number of such bigger locations is probably to be greater, as the environmental body has earlier indicated it does not possess data on tonnage for all unlawful site.

The majority such locations are in countryside locations, frequently out of sight, and on land that should be agricultural property.

Organised Operations

Authorities report many are operated by organised crime gangs, who are earning money by demanding much less than lawful operators to take and landfill garbage.

Businesses have to be liable for gate fees to use lawful waste facilities, based on the quantity and category of waste they are trying to get rid of, and a disposal levy is also charged at just over £126 per metric ton.

Local Anger

Preparation work to remove the Kidlington area site started recently due to worries over the threat of fire and the impact that would have on the close-by highway.

A contracted waste clearance company has been given the contract to deal with the location over the coming 12 months at a price of £9.6m.

An enforcement manager for the government environment division commented that the authority would be looking to claim back the remediation costs under proceeds of crime legislation from any individual prosecuted at the termination of its current investigation.

She added that this week's detentions would help "drive the probe forward" and enable authorities to "investigate more lines of inquiry to understand in detail what occurred and who was implicated".

"The illegal tip at the site was an shocking and deliberate attack on our environment and we empathize with the local frustration at this horrific crime," she remarked.

A senior official welcomed the actions, adding: "The unauthorized tipping of waste at this location is disgraceful and has resulted in substantial detriment to the natural world and upset to the nearby population.

"The administration is dedicated to stamping out this kind of illegal activity throughout the country, by boosting resources to combat illegal dumping, recruiting more officers and implementing more severe controls and sanctions for those who violate the law."

The apprehensions were executed on the specified day by officers from a specialist crime squad and follow an previous arrest of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area region in the autumn. He was let go subject to more inquiries.