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Two individuals have been detained as a component of an investigation into the dumping 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 Andover, Hampshire, while a man in his fifties was detained in Slough, Berkshire in relation with the massive pile of waste tipped near Kidlington.

These apprehensions follow a previous report which exposed the presence of more than 500 unauthorized sites in England, encompassing at minimum 11 so-called "major sites" bigger than 20,000 tons.

A official for the environmental agency stated that the arrests were for ecological and money laundering crimes and were a "vital step" in continuing inquiries. The apprehended men have been set free on bail.

Size of the Problem

The illegal site in Kidlington, situated between the river Cherwell and the A34, is estimated to house approximately 21,000 tonnes of refuse in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) tall.

This mound of garbage is made up of what looks to be sorted residential rubbish, shredded plastics, polystyrene, tyres and assorted everyday objects.

It represents just one of 517 unlawful tips in England, at least 11 of which are estimated to hold in excess of 20,000 tons of waste. These encompass a 280,000-tonne location in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire county and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne dump in Kent.

The total number of such major dumps is likely to be greater, as the environment body has previously indicated it does not hold information on weight for every unlawful site.

A large proportion of such locations are in agricultural areas, typically concealed, and on land that should be agricultural land.

Organized Activity

Authorities state many are run by organized crime groups, who are generating money by charging significantly less than licensed firms to receive and bury garbage.

Firms have to incur site fees to use licensed disposal sites, contingent on the volume and type of material they are trying to discard, and a waste tax is also applied at just over £126 per metric ton.

Public Anger

Preparation work to clear the Kidlington location started in recent weeks following fears over the threat of combustion and the effect that would have on the close-by highway.

A private waste clearance contractor has been granted the job to remediate the area over the coming 12 months at a price of £9.6m.

An investigations officer for the government environment division commented that the agency would be seeking to claim back the clearance costs under confiscation legislation from any individual prosecuted at the conclusion of its ongoing investigation.

She noted that these apprehensions would help "drive the inquiry forward" and permit the agency to "pursue more leads to understand in detail what transpired and who was a party to it".

"This illegal site at this location was an atrocious and intentional attack on our ecology and the authorities understand the public's frustration at this egregious offence," she stated.

A government representative supported the detentions, commenting: "This unauthorized dumping of rubbish at Kidlington is appalling and has led to considerable damage to the ecology and distress to the local community.

"The government is committed to stamping out this kind of crime throughout the UK, by increasing financing to tackle illegal dumping, recruiting more staff and enacting tougher checks and fines for those who flout the law."

The arrests were carried out on a recent Thursday by agents from a specialist serious crime squad and are in addition to an prior arrest of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area region in the autumn. He was let go subject to further investigations.