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A pair of individuals have been detained as an element of an probe into the tipping of many thousands of tons of refuse in a rural field in Oxfordshire.

Authorities reported that a 69-year-old was detained at a property in the town of Andover, while a 54-year-old was arrested in the town of Slough in relation with the huge heap of rubbish tipped near Kidlington.

These detentions follow a prior revelation which exposed the operation of more than 500 unauthorized tips throughout the country of England, encompassing at minimum 11 so-called "super sites" bigger than 20,000 tonnes.

A representative for the environment agency commented that the apprehensions were for environmental and proceeds of crime crimes and represented a "key step" in continuing inquiries. The apprehended men have been released on pre-trial release.

Magnitude of the Problem

The illegal site in the Kidlington area, situated between the river Cherwell and the A34 road, is thought to hold about 21,000 tons of waste in a pile which is up to 150m (490ft) lengthwise and 6m (20ft) tall.

This heap of garbage is made up of what appears to be sorted household waste, chopped up plastic items, Styrofoam, automobile tires and other domestic articles.

It is just one of 517 unlawful dumps throughout England, at least 11 of which are estimated to hold over 20,000 metric tons of garbage. These feature a 280,000-tonne site in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire county and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The overall figure of such larger dumps is expected to be greater, as the environmental agency has previously acknowledged it does not hold data on weight for each unauthorized tip.

A large proportion of sites are in agricultural areas, frequently out of sight, and on land that is zoned as agricultural ground.

Organized Operations

Law enforcement say many are run by criminal organizations, who are making cash by demanding far less than lawful companies to take and landfill waste.

Companies have to pay disposal fees to use lawful waste facilities, contingent on the quantity and type of material they are trying to discard, and a waste tax is also applied at just over £126 per metric ton.

Local Frustration

Preparatory operations to remove the affected location commenced recently amid worries over the threat of combustion and the effect that would have on the nearby highway.

A commercial waste removal company has been granted the job to handle the area over the following 12 months period at a expense of £9.6m.

An investigations manager for the country's regulatory unit said that the agency would be looking to recoup the clearance expenses under proceeds of crime laws from any party ultimately convicted at the end of its ongoing investigation.

She noted that these apprehensions would help "push the investigation forward" and enable the agency to "follow more lines of inquiry to determine precisely what transpired and who was implicated".

"This illegal site at Kidlington was an atrocious and calculated attack on our environment and officials empathize with the local outrage at this egregious crime," she stated.

A senior minister supported the detentions, commenting: "This illegal tipping of rubbish at Kidlington is utterly appalling and has led to considerable damage to the ecology and distress to the nearby population.

"Our administration is dedicated to eliminating this type of criminality across the UK, by boosting funds to combat waste crime, employing more officers and enacting more severe checks and penalties for those who violate the rules."

The arrests were carried out on the specified day by agents from a dedicated organised crime team and are in addition to an prior apprehension of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area in last November. He was set free awaiting further investigations.