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Two individuals have been taken into custody as a component of an probe into the dumping of several thousand of tons of waste in a rural field in Oxfordshire, England.

Authorities indicated that a man in his late sixties was apprehended at a property in Hampshire's Andover, while a 54-year-old was arrested in Slough, Berkshire in relation with the huge heap of rubbish dumped near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These arrests come after a prior investigation which uncovered the presence of over 500 unlawful dumps across the country of England, featuring at a minimum of 11 so-called "super sites" bigger than 20,000 tonnes.

A representative for the regulatory authorities said that the arrests were for ecological and money laundering crimes and were a "crucial step" in ongoing inquiries. Both men have been let go on bail.

Size of the Issue

The dump in Kidlington, situated between the Cherwell River and the A34 highway, is estimated to hold about 21,000 metric tons of rubbish in a pile which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) in height.

This pile of waste is composed of what appears to be processed household refuse, chopped up plastics, polystyrene, tyres and various domestic items.

It represents just one of 517 unauthorized dumps throughout the country, at least 11 of which hold in excess of 20,000 metric tons of garbage. They feature a 280,000-tonne site 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 major sites is probably to be higher, as the environmental body has earlier indicated it does not hold data on weight for each unauthorized tip.

The majority sites are in rural locations, frequently hidden, and on land that is intended to be farm ground.

Criminal Activity

Law enforcement state many are run by organised crime gangs, who are earning cash by demanding significantly less than licensed companies to accept and landfill waste.

Companies have to incur gate fees to use lawful disposal sites, based on the volume and nature of waste they are trying to get rid of, and a disposal levy is also charged at just over £126 per metric ton.

Public Frustration

Preparatory operations to clean up the Kidlington location began earlier this month due to worries over the risk of combustion and the consequences that would have on the close-by major road.

A contracted waste clearance company has been awarded the contract to handle the site over the following 12 months period at a cost of £9.6m.

An investigations officer for the national regulatory unit stated that the authority would be aiming to recover the remediation funds under asset recovery legislation from any party successfully prosecuted at the end of its current investigation.

She noted that the recent apprehensions would help "push the inquiry forward" and allow officials to "investigate more lines of inquiry to understand precisely what transpired and who was a party to it".

"The unauthorized site at Kidlington was an appalling and calculated assault on our environment and the authorities understand the community's outrage at this horrific act," she stated.

A government official praised the actions, adding: "This illegal tipping of garbage at the site is utterly appalling and has resulted in considerable detriment to the environment and distress to the surrounding residents.

"Our administration is pledged to stamping out this category of crime across the nation, by increasing resources to address environmental crime, hiring more personnel and implementing more severe checks and fines for those who flout the regulations."

The detentions were carried out on the specified day by officers from a regional serious crime squad and follow an prior detention of a man in his thirties from the Surrey region in last November. He was released subject to additional enquiries.