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A pair of individuals have been arrested as an element of an investigation into the illegal deposit of several thousand of tonnes of waste in a open field in Oxfordshire, England.

Law enforcement indicated that a man in his late sixties was apprehended at a dwelling in Hampshire's Andover, while a 54-year-old was taken into custody in the town of Slough in connection with the massive mound of garbage dumped near the area of Kidlington.

These detentions come after a recent report which uncovered the existence of more than 500 unauthorized tips across the country of England, encompassing at a minimum of 11 so-called "major sites" greater than 20,000 tons.

A official for the environmental body said that the detentions were for environment-related and proceeds of crime violations and represented a "crucial step" in active investigations. Both men have been let go on conditional release.

Scale of the Situation

The tipping ground in near Kidlington, located between the River Cherwell and the A34 highway, is thought to hold approximately 21,000 tons of waste in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) in height.

This heap of waste is consists of what looks to be sorted residential waste, fragmented plastic items, polystyrene, automobile tires and other domestic objects.

It represents just one example of 517 illegal tips throughout England, at minimum 11 of which contain over 20,000 tons of garbage. These encompass a 280,000-tonne area in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne areas in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne dump in the county of Kent.

The actual amount of such bigger sites is probably to be greater, as the environmental agency has earlier indicated it does not possess data on volume for every illegal site.

A large proportion of such locations are in countryside locations, typically out of sight, and on land that is intended to be agricultural ground.

Criminal Operations

Law enforcement state a significant number are operated by criminal organizations, who are earning money by demanding significantly less than legitimate companies to take and dispose of garbage.

Firms have to incur disposal fees to use legitimate waste facilities, depending on the quantity and category of material they are trying to get rid of, and landfill tax is also charged at just over £126 per tonne.

Community Anger

Initial work to clear the affected location began in recent weeks due to concerns over the risk of combustion and the consequences that would have on the close-by major road.

A commercial waste removal company has been given the contract to remediate the area over the coming 12 months at a price of £9.6m.

An enforcement official for the country's environmental crime division stated that the authority would be seeking to claim back the remediation costs under asset recovery acts from any individual ultimately found guilty at the end of its ongoing case.

She noted that the recent apprehensions would help "drive the investigation forward" and permit authorities to "investigate more leads to ascertain exactly what transpired and who was a party to it".

"The unlawful site at this location was an appalling and intentional assault on our natural surroundings and officials share the public's frustration at this terrible offence," she stated.

A senior representative welcomed the arrests, stating: "The unauthorized dumping of garbage at this location is disgraceful and has caused significant harm to the environment and anguish to the local residents.

"The administration is committed to eliminating this kind of criminality throughout the nation, by increasing resources to combat waste crime, employing more officers and enacting stricter controls and sanctions for those who break the rules."

The detentions were carried out on Thursday by personnel from a dedicated crime squad and follow an previous detention of a 39-year-old from the Guildford region in last November. He was set free subject to more inquiries.