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Two individuals have been arrested as a component of an inquiry into the dumping of thousands of metric tons of rubbish in a field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Authorities reported that a man in his late sixties was arrested at a residence in Andover, Hampshire, while a man in his fifties was arrested in Slough, Berkshire in relation with the huge heap of waste tipped near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These detentions follow a recent revelation which exposed the existence of more than 500 unlawful tips throughout the country of England, encompassing at minimum 11 so-called "large-scale sites" greater than 20,000 tons.

A official for the environmental agency said that the arrests were for environmental and proceeds of crime violations and were a "key step" in active probes. The two individuals have been released on conditional release.

Magnitude of the Problem

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

This mound of garbage is composed of what looks to be treated household waste, fragmented plastics, Styrofoam, tires and assorted domestic objects.

It constitutes just one of 517 unauthorized dumps across England, at a minimum of 11 of which hold over 20,000 tons of waste. Such sites encompass a 280,000-tonne site in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire county and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The total amount of such major locations is probably to be greater, as the environment agency has previously acknowledged it does not maintain records on volume for each unauthorized site.

Most such locations are in agricultural areas, often out of sight, and on land that is intended to be agricultural land.

Criminal Operations

Police say a significant number are managed by organised crime gangs, who are making profit by demanding significantly less than lawful companies to take and landfill garbage.

Firms have to be liable for site fees to use licensed disposal sites, depending on the amount and nature of refuse they are trying to dispose of, and a disposal levy is also charged at just over £126 per tonne.

Community Frustration

Preparatory operations to clear the Kidlington area dump commenced in recent weeks amid concerns over the risk of fire and the impact that would have on the close-by A-road.

A contracted waste removal firm has been granted the job to deal with the site over the next 12 months at a cost of £9.6m.

An compliance officer for the government environmental crime team commented that the body would be seeking to claim back the clean-up costs under confiscation laws from anyone successfully found guilty at the termination of its active case.

She added that the recent arrests would help "push the investigation forward" and permit the agency to "investigate more lines of inquiry to ascertain in detail what transpired and who was a party to it".

"This unlawful dump at the site was an shocking and deliberate attack on our ecology and we understand the local outrage at this horrific offence," she said.

A government representative praised the actions, commenting: "The unlawful dumping of waste at Kidlington is appalling and has resulted in significant detriment to the natural world and upset to the nearby population.

"The government is pledged to eliminating this type of criminality throughout the country, by increasing financing to combat illegal dumping, employing more personnel and implementing more severe controls and penalties for those who break the rules."

The apprehensions were executed on the specified day by agents from a regional organised crime team and are in addition to an prior apprehension of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area region in November. He was set free awaiting further enquiries.