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Two individuals have been arrested as a component of an probe into the illegal deposit of many thousands of metric tons of rubbish in a open field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Authorities indicated that a man in his late sixties was arrested at a residence in Hampshire's Andover, while a 54-year-old was taken into custody in Slough in association with the massive heap of garbage tipped near the area of Kidlington.

These arrests come after a recent revelation which uncovered the presence of over 500 unlawful sites across England, featuring at a minimum of 11 so-called "major sites" larger than 20,000 tons.

A representative for the regulatory body said that the apprehensions were for environment-related and financial offences and were a "crucial step" in active investigations. Both men have been released on pre-trial release.

Size of the Problem

The illegal site in near Kidlington, situated between the river Cherwell and the A34, is estimated to hold approximately 21,000 metric tons of refuse in a pile which is up to 150m (490ft) lengthwise and 6m (20ft) tall.

This pile of rubbish is composed of what seems to be sorted domestic waste, chopped up plastic items, Styrofoam, tyres and various household items.

It is just one of 517 unlawful sites in England, at a minimum of 11 of which contain over 20,000 metric tons of waste. Such sites feature a 280,000-tonne area in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne tip in the county of Kent.

The total figure of such bigger sites is likely to be greater, as the regulatory agency has earlier stated it does not possess information on volume for all unauthorized tip.

A large proportion of such locations are in rural locations, typically hidden, and on land that should be farm land.

Criminal Activity

Law enforcement state a significant number are run by criminal organizations, who are making profit by asking for much less than legitimate firms to accept and landfill rubbish.

Businesses have to pay site fees to use legitimate waste facilities, contingent on the volume and type of refuse they are trying to dispose of, and landfill tax is also charged at just over £126 per ton.

Public Frustration

Initial efforts to remove the Kidlington site started recently due to worries over the potential of combustion and the effect that would have on the nearby major road.

A commercial clean-up contractor has been granted the job to handle the area over the coming 12 months at a cost of £9.6m.

An investigations officer for the national environment division commented that the body would be seeking to recover the remediation funds under asset recovery laws from any party ultimately prosecuted at the termination of its current investigation.

She further stated that the recent detentions would help "drive the probe forward" and enable officials to "follow more lines of inquiry to determine in detail what transpired and who was a party to it".

"This unlawful tip at Kidlington was an atrocious and intentional affront on our environment and officials understand the local outrage at this horrific crime," she stated.

A cabinet official welcomed the arrests, stating: "This unauthorized dumping of garbage at Kidlington is disgraceful and has resulted in substantial damage to the ecology and anguish to the nearby residents.

"Our government is pledged to eradicating this kind of criminality across the UK, by increasing financing to address illegal dumping, employing more officers and implementing tougher checks and fines for those who flout the rules."

The apprehensions were executed on the specified day by officers from a regional crime unit and are in addition to an prior apprehension of a man in his thirties from the Guildford area area in November. He was let go subject to further inquiries.