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Two men have been taken into custody as a component of an inquiry into the dumping of several thousand of metric tons of refuse in a rural field in Oxfordshire.

Officials stated that a 69-year-old was apprehended at a property in the town of Andover, while a 54-year-old was arrested in the town of Slough in association with the enormous mound of garbage tipped near the area of Kidlington.

These arrests follow a previous investigation which uncovered the presence of in excess of 500 illegal tips in the country of England, featuring at a minimum of 11 so-called "super sites" larger than 20,000 metric tons.

A official for the environment body commented that the arrests were for environment-related and financial offences and were a "vital step" in active inquiries. The apprehended men have been set free on bail.

Size of the Problem

The illegal site in the Kidlington area, positioned between the Cherwell River and the A34, is thought to contain around 21,000 tonnes of rubbish in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) high.

This heap of garbage is consists of what seems to be treated household waste, fragmented plastics, expanded polystyrene, tyres and various domestic objects.

It is just a single of 517 illegal sites throughout England, at a minimum of 11 of which are estimated to hold more than 20,000 metric tons of waste. They feature a 280,000-tonne site in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne areas in Lancashire county and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne tip in Kent.

The total amount of such bigger sites is expected to be larger, as the environmental agency has in the past acknowledged it does not hold information on tonnage for every unlawful tip.

A large proportion of sites are in countryside locations, typically concealed, and on land that should be agricultural property.

Organized Operations

Authorities report many are operated by criminal organizations, who are generating cash by charging significantly less than legitimate operators to take and bury garbage.

Firms have to incur disposal fees to use legitimate disposal sites, contingent on the amount and category of waste they are trying to discard, and landfill tax is also applied at just over £126 per metric ton.

Local Outrage

Preparatory efforts to clean up the Kidlington dump began earlier this month amid fears over the potential of fire and the consequences that would have on the nearby highway.

A commercial clean-up company has been granted the contract to deal with the location over the next 12 months at a expense of £9.6m.

An enforcement official for the country's environmental crime unit stated that the body would be aiming to recover the clearance costs under confiscation laws from any party successfully convicted at the termination of its ongoing investigation.

She further stated that this week's arrests would help "drive the inquiry forward" and permit the agency to "pursue more avenues to determine in detail what transpired and who was a party to it".

"The unlawful dump at Kidlington was an appalling and deliberate assault on our natural surroundings and the authorities empathize with the public's anger at this egregious offence," she remarked.

A government representative supported the actions, commenting: "The illegal dumping of garbage at Kidlington is utterly appalling and has caused significant detriment to the natural world and anguish to the local residents.

"Our authorities is committed to eliminating this kind of criminality throughout the nation, by increasing financing to combat environmental crime, recruiting more staff and implementing tougher measures and sanctions for those who break the regulations."

The apprehensions were executed on Thursday by officers from a dedicated organised crime unit and follow an earlier apprehension of a man in his thirties from the Surrey area in November. He was let go pending more enquiries.