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Two individuals have been taken into custody as a component of an inquiry into the tipping of thousands of tonnes of refuse in a open field in Oxfordshire, England.

Law enforcement reported that a man in his late sixties was apprehended at a property in Hampshire's Andover, while a man in his fifties was taken into custody in the town of Slough in connection with the enormous heap of rubbish deposited near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These arrests come after a recent revelation which exposed the operation of over 500 illegal tips across England, including at minimum 11 so-called "large-scale sites" larger than 20,000 tons.

A official for the environment body commented that the apprehensions were for environmental and financial violations and were a "vital step" in active investigations. Both men have been let go on conditional release.

Scale of the Situation

The dump in the Kidlington area, situated between the River Cherwell and the A34, is believed to contain approximately 21,000 tonnes of waste in a pile which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) tall.

This mound of garbage is made up of what appears to be treated household refuse, chopped up plastics, expanded polystyrene, tyres and assorted household items.

It represents just one example of 517 unauthorized tips throughout England, at least 11 of which hold in excess of 20,000 tons of garbage. These feature a 280,000-tonne area in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire county and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne site in the county of Kent.

The overall amount of such bigger dumps is expected to be greater, as the environmental agency has earlier indicated it does not maintain records on weight for each unauthorized tip.

The majority sites are in countryside settings, frequently concealed, and on land that is intended to be agricultural ground.

Organised Operations

Law enforcement state a significant number are run by organized crime groups, who are making cash by demanding far less than legitimate firms to receive and landfill rubbish.

Companies have to be liable for site fees to use licensed landfill sites, contingent on the amount and type of waste they are trying to dispose of, and a disposal levy is also levied at just over £126 per ton.

Community Outrage

Initial work to clear the affected site commenced in recent weeks amid fears over the risk of fire and the impact that would have on the close-by A-road.

A commercial waste clearance contractor has been granted the contract to deal with the site over the following 12 months at a cost of £9.6m.

An compliance officer for the national environmental crime unit commented that the agency would be looking to recover the remediation costs under asset recovery legislation from any individual successfully convicted at the conclusion of its current inquiry.

She noted that this week's apprehensions would help "push the probe forward" and permit authorities to "investigate more leads to ascertain precisely what transpired and who was a party to it".

"This unauthorized tip at this location was an atrocious and calculated assault on our natural surroundings and officials share the local outrage at this egregious act," she said.

A senior representative praised the arrests, stating: "This unlawful deposit of rubbish at Kidlington is utterly appalling and has led to significant damage to the natural world and distress to the surrounding community.

"The administration is committed to eliminating this type of criminality throughout the country, by increasing resources to tackle waste crime, hiring more staff and implementing more severe checks and penalties for those who flout the law."

The detentions were carried out on the specified day by officers from a specialist crime unit and come after an previous arrest of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area region in last November. He was set free pending additional enquiries.