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Two individuals have been arrested as an element of an probe into the tipping of many thousands of metric tons of refuse in a field in Oxfordshire, England.

Law enforcement indicated that a 69-year-old was arrested at a residence in the town of Andover, while a man in his fifties was arrested in Slough in relation with the huge heap of garbage deposited near the area of Kidlington.

These arrests occur a week after a prior revelation which uncovered the existence of in excess of 500 unauthorized dumps in England, including at minimum 11 so-called "major sites" greater than 20,000 tonnes.

A official for the environment body said that the apprehensions were for ecological and financial offences and constituted a "key step" in ongoing inquiries. The apprehended men have been released on pre-trial release.

Magnitude of the Situation

The tipping ground in the Kidlington area, located between the River Cherwell and the A34 road, is thought to house about 21,000 tons of refuse in a pile which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) in height.

This pile of rubbish is made up of what appears to be sorted residential refuse, fragmented plastic materials, polystyrene, automobile tires and other household articles.

It is just a single of 517 illegal sites throughout England, at least 11 of which contain over 20,000 metric tons of waste. They encompass a 280,000-tonne location in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne tip in Kent.

The total figure of such bigger locations is probably to be greater, as the environmental authority has in the past acknowledged it does not possess data on tonnage for each illegal tip.

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

Organized Enterprise

Law enforcement state numerous are operated by organised crime gangs, who are earning profit by charging much less than licensed operators to accept and dispose of garbage.

Businesses have to pay disposal fees to use legitimate landfill sites, based on the volume and category of waste they are trying to dispose of, and landfill tax is also charged at just over £126 per ton.

Local Outrage

Preparatory operations to remove the Kidlington area dump started recently due to concerns over the threat of blaze and the effect that would have on the nearby A-road.

A contracted waste removal firm has been granted the job to handle the location over the following 12 months at a cost of £9.6m.

An compliance official for the government regulatory division stated that the body would be seeking to recoup the clearance funds under confiscation legislation from any party ultimately convicted at the termination of its current inquiry.

She further stated that this week's arrests would help "drive the investigation forward" and enable the agency to "pursue more leads to determine precisely what transpired and who was implicated".

"This unlawful tip at this location was an shocking and deliberate assault on our natural surroundings and officials share the public's frustration at this terrible act," she remarked.

A senior official supported the arrests, stating: "The unauthorized dumping of garbage at Kidlington is utterly appalling and has resulted in significant damage to the ecology and upset to the nearby residents.

"Our administration is dedicated to stamping out this kind of criminality in the country, by increasing resources to tackle illegal dumping, recruiting more staff and implementing tougher checks and penalties for those who break the rules."

The arrests were carried out on Thursday by officers from a regional organised crime unit and come after an prior detention of a man in his thirties from the Guildford area area in November. He was let go awaiting more investigations.