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A pair of individuals have been detained as part of an investigation into the dumping of many thousands of tons of rubbish in a field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Law enforcement reported that a 69-year-old was detained at a property in the town of Andover, while a 54-year-old was arrested in Slough, Berkshire in association with the enormous mound of waste deposited near Kidlington.

These apprehensions occur a week after a previous investigation which exposed the presence of over 500 illegal sites throughout England, encompassing at minimum 11 so-called "major sites" bigger than 20,000 metric tons.

A representative for the environment authorities commented that the detentions were for environmental and financial violations and were a "vital step" in active investigations. Both men have been released on bail.

Size of the Issue

The tipping ground in the Kidlington area, situated between the River Cherwell and the A34, is thought to contain around 21,000 metric tons of rubbish in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) lengthwise and 6m (20ft) high.

This heap of waste is composed of what appears to be treated household refuse, chopped up plastic items, polystyrene, tires and assorted domestic objects.

It represents just one example of 517 illegal tips throughout the country, at minimum 11 of which are estimated to hold over 20,000 tons of rubbish. These feature a 280,000-tonne area in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne areas in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne dump in Kent.

The overall amount of such larger locations is probably to be larger, as the environment body has in the past stated it does not maintain information on weight for every illegal site.

Most sites are in rural settings, typically out of sight, and on land that should be agricultural land.

Organised Enterprise

Authorities report numerous are operated by organized crime groups, who are making money by charging far less than licensed companies to take and dispose of waste.

Firms have to pay site fees to use legitimate disposal sites, contingent on the amount and category of material they are trying to discard, and a disposal levy is also levied at just over £126 per ton.

Local Frustration

Preparatory work to clear the Kidlington area dump started recently due to fears over the potential of blaze and the consequences that would have on the adjacent A-road.

A commercial waste removal contractor has been granted the job to handle the area over the coming 12 months period at a cost of £9.6m.

An compliance officer for the government regulatory team said that the agency would be looking to claim back the clean-up expenses under proceeds of crime legislation from any party ultimately prosecuted at the termination of its ongoing case.

She noted that this week's apprehensions would help "move the investigation forward" and allow officials to "pursue more leads to ascertain in detail what occurred and who was implicated".

"The illegal site at Kidlington was an appalling and calculated assault on our ecology and officials understand the local anger at this horrific offence," she said.

A senior official praised the actions, commenting: "The illegal dumping of rubbish at the site is appalling and has caused substantial damage to the ecology and anguish to the local community.

"The government is committed to eradicating this type of crime throughout the country, by boosting resources to tackle waste crime, hiring more personnel and enacting stricter measures and sanctions for those who flout the rules."

The arrests were carried out on Thursday by agents from a specialist crime unit and follow an earlier apprehension of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area region in November. He was set free awaiting further enquiries.