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A pair of individuals have been arrested as part of an inquiry into the illegal deposit of several thousand of metric tons of rubbish in a rural field in Oxfordshire.

Authorities reported that a 69-year-old was apprehended at a property in Andover, Hampshire, while a 54-year-old was taken into custody in Slough in relation with the massive mound of garbage tipped near Kidlington.

These detentions follow a prior investigation which exposed the existence of in excess of 500 unlawful tips throughout England, featuring at minimum 11 so-called "large-scale sites" bigger than 20,000 metric tons.

A official for the regulatory authorities stated that the detentions were for environment-related and proceeds of crime violations and were a "key step" in continuing inquiries. The apprehended men have been set free on pre-trial release.

Scale of the Problem

The tipping ground in Kidlington, located between the River Cherwell and the A34 road, is believed to contain about 21,000 metric tons of rubbish in a pile which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) in height.

This heap of waste is composed of what looks to be sorted residential refuse, fragmented plastic items, polystyrene, tires and various household items.

It represents just one of 517 unauthorized tips throughout England, at minimum 11 of which hold in excess of 20,000 tons of waste. They include a 280,000-tonne area in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The actual number of such major sites is expected to be higher, as the environment body has earlier indicated it does not possess records on tonnage for all unlawful site.

Most sites are in rural settings, often out of sight, and on land that is zoned as arable property.

Criminal Enterprise

Police say many are managed by organised crime gangs, who are earning profit by demanding significantly less than legitimate firms to receive and dispose of waste.

Businesses have to be liable for site fees to use lawful waste facilities, based on the quantity and nature of waste they are trying to dispose of, and a disposal levy is also levied at just over £126 per ton.

Community Frustration

Initial work to remove the Kidlington site commenced in recent weeks amid fears over the potential of combustion and the impact that would have on the close-by highway.

A commercial waste removal contractor has been given the task to handle the area over the coming 12 months at a expense of £9.6m.

An enforcement official for the national environmental crime division commented that the body would be seeking to recover the clearance funds under asset recovery legislation from anyone found guilty at the end of its current case.

She noted that these detentions would help "move the investigation forward" and enable authorities to "follow more avenues to understand in detail what happened and who was a party to it".

"This unauthorized tip at the site was an atrocious and calculated affront on our environment and we understand the community's outrage at this horrific act," she remarked.

A senior representative welcomed the detentions, stating: "The illegal tipping of waste at this location is appalling and has resulted in considerable harm to the natural world and anguish to the surrounding population.

"The authorities is committed to eradicating this category of illegal activity across the UK, by increasing resources to tackle environmental crime, hiring more officers and introducing stricter controls and fines for those who violate the rules."

The apprehensions were made on the specified day by officers from a regional serious crime squad and are in addition to an previous apprehension of a 39-year-old from the Guildford region in November. He was set free subject to additional enquiries.