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Two individuals have been taken into custody as a component of an inquiry into the tipping of many thousands of tons of rubbish in a open 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 detained in Slough, Berkshire in association with the huge mound of waste deposited near Kidlington.

These arrests occur a week after a recent report which exposed the existence of in excess of 500 unauthorized sites throughout the country of England, encompassing at minimum 11 so-called "major sites" larger than 20,000 tonnes.

A representative for the environment authorities stated that the arrests were for environmental and financial violations and constituted a "vital step" in ongoing investigations. Both men have been let go on conditional release.

Scale of the Issue

The dump in the Kidlington area, situated between the Cherwell River and the A34 road, is estimated to house around 21,000 metric tons of rubbish in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) in height.

This heap of garbage is composed of what seems to be sorted residential rubbish, shredded plastic items, expanded polystyrene, automobile tires and assorted household objects.

It is just a single of 517 unauthorized dumps in England, at least 11 of which contain in excess of 20,000 tonnes of garbage. Such sites include a 280,000-tonne site in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne tip in Kent.

The overall number of such major sites is probably to be larger, as the regulatory authority has in the past indicated it does not maintain data on weight for all unauthorized dump.

The majority such locations are in rural locations, frequently hidden, and on land that should be farm ground.

Organised Activity

Law enforcement state numerous are run by organized crime groups, who are earning profit by asking for significantly less than licensed operators to accept and dispose of garbage.

Firms have to pay gate fees to use legitimate waste facilities, depending on the quantity and type of refuse they are trying to dispose of, and landfill tax is also levied at just over £126 per ton.

Local Frustration

Preparation efforts to clean up the affected site started earlier this month following concerns over the risk of combustion and the effect that would have on the adjacent highway.

A contracted waste removal company has been granted the task to remediate the location over the next 12 months at a price of £9.6m.

An enforcement official for the country's environmental crime division commented that the authority would be aiming to recover the clearance costs under asset recovery laws from anyone ultimately convicted at the conclusion of its active investigation.

She noted that these apprehensions would help "drive the probe forward" and permit authorities to "investigate more lines of inquiry to understand exactly what transpired and who was involved".

"The unlawful dump at this location was an appalling and deliberate assault on our natural surroundings and officials empathize with the local frustration at this egregious act," she remarked.

A cabinet minister praised the actions, commenting: "The unlawful dumping of garbage at this location is utterly appalling and has resulted in significant harm to the ecology and distress to the local population.

"The government is committed to stamping out this kind of criminality throughout the nation, by augmenting financing to tackle illegal dumping, employing more personnel and enacting tougher checks and fines for those who flout the rules."

The apprehensions were carried out on Thursday by personnel from a regional serious crime squad and are in addition to an prior arrest of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area area in the autumn. He was let go pending more enquiries.