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A pair of individuals have been arrested as part of an probe into the tipping of several thousand of metric tons of refuse in a field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Law enforcement indicated that a man in his late sixties was arrested at a dwelling in Hampshire's Andover, while a 54-year-old was detained in Slough in connection with the enormous pile of waste dumped near Kidlington.

These arrests come after a previous report which uncovered the operation of in excess of 500 unauthorized tips throughout England, including at least 11 so-called "major sites" greater than 20,000 metric tons.

A spokeswoman for the environment authorities stated that the detentions were for environmental and proceeds of crime crimes and constituted a "crucial step" in active investigations. Both men have been released on bail.

Magnitude of the Situation

The dump in the Kidlington area, located between the Cherwell River and the A34 road, is thought to house about 21,000 tons of waste in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) tall.

This pile of waste is made up of what appears to be processed household refuse, shredded plastic items, Styrofoam, automobile tires and other everyday articles.

It is just a single of 517 illegal dumps in the country, at minimum 11 of which hold more than 20,000 tonnes of rubbish. They include a 280,000-tonne site in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne areas in Lancashire county and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The overall figure of such larger dumps is probably to be higher, as the regulatory body has in the past stated it does not hold data on tonnage for each illegal tip.

The majority these sites are in rural areas, often concealed, and on land that should be agricultural property.

Criminal Operations

Authorities state numerous are managed by organized crime groups, who are generating profit by charging far less than licensed companies to accept and bury waste.

Companies have to be liable for gate fees to use licensed waste facilities, depending on the volume and nature of material they are trying to discard, and a waste tax is also applied at just over £126 per tonne.

Local Frustration

Initial work to clear the affected site commenced in recent weeks due to worries over the threat of blaze and the consequences that would have on the adjacent A-road.

A private clean-up firm has been granted the job to remediate the location over the coming 12 months period at a cost of £9.6m.

An enforcement manager for the country's environmental crime unit stated that the authority would be looking to recover the clean-up costs under asset recovery laws from any party successfully convicted at the termination of its active case.

She added that these arrests would help "push the inquiry forward" and permit officials to "investigate more lines of inquiry to ascertain in detail what happened and who was involved".

"This unauthorized tip at Kidlington was an atrocious and calculated affront on our natural surroundings and officials understand the local frustration at this terrible act," she stated.

A senior minister welcomed the arrests, commenting: "The unauthorized deposit of garbage at the site is utterly appalling and has resulted in substantial damage to the ecology and upset to the surrounding residents.

"The government is dedicated to eliminating this kind of illegal activity throughout the country, by boosting resources to address illegal dumping, employing more officers and enacting tougher measures and fines for those who violate the law."

The detentions were made on the specified day by agents from a dedicated crime team and come after an earlier arrest of a man in his thirties from the Guildford area area in November. He was set free awaiting more investigations.