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A pair of individuals have been taken into custody as a component of an probe into the illegal deposit of thousands of tons of rubbish in a field in Oxfordshire.

Officials reported that a 69-year-old was detained at a dwelling in Andover, Hampshire, while a 54-year-old was arrested in Slough, Berkshire in association with the huge mound of garbage deposited near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These detentions follow a recent report which uncovered the presence of over 500 illegal sites in England, encompassing at minimum 11 so-called "super sites" larger than 20,000 tonnes.

A official for the regulatory authorities stated that the apprehensions were for environment-related and money laundering crimes and were a "vital step" in active probes. Both men have been released on pre-trial release.

Magnitude of the Problem

The illegal site in Kidlington, positioned between the Cherwell River and the A34, is thought to house about 21,000 tonnes of waste in a pile which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) tall.

This heap of garbage is composed of what appears to be treated household waste, shredded plastics, expanded polystyrene, tyres and various everyday articles.

It represents just a single of 517 illegal sites throughout England, at minimum 11 of which contain in excess of 20,000 metric tons of waste. Such sites include a 280,000-tonne area in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne areas in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne tip in Kent.

The overall number of such major locations is probably to be higher, as the environmental agency has previously stated it does not possess data on weight for every illegal dump.

Most such locations are in rural locations, often out of sight, and on land that is zoned as arable ground.

Criminal Enterprise

Police say numerous are run by organised crime gangs, who are making cash by demanding much less than lawful companies to take and dispose of garbage.

Businesses have to pay disposal fees to use licensed disposal sites, depending on the amount and type of material they are trying to get rid of, and a disposal levy is also applied at just over £126 per metric ton.

Community Frustration

Initial work to clean up the Kidlington area location started recently amid concerns over the risk of fire and the consequences that would have on the adjacent A-road.

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

An investigations officer for the country's environmental crime team commented that the authority would be seeking to recoup the clean-up funds under confiscation acts from anyone found guilty at the termination of its active inquiry.

She further stated that these detentions would help "drive the probe forward" and enable officials to "investigate more leads to understand exactly what transpired and who was involved".

"The unauthorized tip at Kidlington was an appalling and deliberate assault on our environment and the authorities share the public's anger at this terrible crime," she said.

A cabinet representative welcomed the arrests, commenting: "The unauthorized dumping of rubbish at Kidlington is disgraceful and has resulted in significant harm to the natural world and distress to the surrounding community.

"Our administration is committed to eliminating this category of criminality across the UK, by boosting resources to address waste crime, recruiting more personnel and enacting tougher controls and fines for those who break the rules."

The arrests were executed on the specified day by personnel from a dedicated serious crime team and follow an prior arrest of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area region in last November. He was let go subject to more investigations.