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Two individuals have been taken into custody as a component of an inquiry into the dumping of thousands of tons of refuse in a rural field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Officials stated that a man in his late sixties was detained at a residence in Hampshire's Andover, while a 54-year-old was arrested in Slough in association with the massive pile of waste deposited near the area of Kidlington.

These arrests occur a week after a prior revelation which uncovered the operation of more than 500 unauthorized sites throughout England, encompassing at a minimum of 11 so-called "super sites" bigger than 20,000 tonnes.

A representative for the environment authorities commented that the arrests were for environment-related and money laundering crimes and represented a "key step" in active probes. The two individuals have been let go on pre-trial release.

Magnitude of the Issue

The tipping ground in the Kidlington area, situated between the River Cherwell and the A34, is believed to contain around 21,000 tonnes of refuse in a pile which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) high.

This heap of garbage is made up of what appears to be treated residential waste, shredded plastics, Styrofoam, tires and assorted everyday articles.

It constitutes just one of 517 unauthorized dumps throughout England, at least 11 of which are estimated to hold over 20,000 tonnes of rubbish. These feature a 280,000-tonne area in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The total number of such larger locations is likely to be larger, as the environmental agency has in the past acknowledged it does not maintain data on weight for every unlawful site.

A large proportion of such locations are in rural settings, frequently concealed, and on land that is zoned as agricultural ground.

Criminal Operations

Authorities state a significant number are run by criminal organizations, who are making profit by charging much less than lawful companies to take and bury waste.

Firms have to incur gate fees to use licensed landfill sites, based on the volume and category of waste they are trying to dispose of, and a disposal levy is also charged at just over £126 per tonne.

Public Anger

Preparation work to clear the Kidlington area location started earlier this month following concerns over the risk of blaze and the effect that would have on the nearby A-road.

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

An compliance manager for the country's environment unit commented that the authority would be seeking to recover the clean-up expenses under asset recovery acts from any individual ultimately found guilty at the conclusion of its current investigation.

She further stated that the recent detentions would help "drive the probe forward" and permit the agency to "investigate more avenues to understand in detail what transpired and who was implicated".

"The unlawful dump at Kidlington was an appalling and calculated affront on our ecology and we understand the local frustration at this terrible offence," she said.

A senior representative praised the actions, commenting: "This illegal deposit of rubbish at this location is appalling and has led to considerable damage to the environment and distress to the local community.

"The government is dedicated to stamping out this category of crime across the country, by increasing resources to combat waste crime, hiring more staff and introducing tougher checks and fines for those who violate the law."

The apprehensions were made on the specified day by personnel from a specialist serious crime unit and come after an prior arrest of a man in his thirties from the Surrey area in the autumn. He was set free pending further inquiries.