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Two men have been taken into custody as a component of an investigation into the illegal deposit of thousands of tons of refuse in a field in Oxfordshire.

Officials indicated that a 69-year-old was arrested at a dwelling in Hampshire's Andover, while a 54-year-old was taken into custody in Slough in association with the enormous heap of garbage dumped near the area of Kidlington.

These detentions occur a week after a recent revelation which revealed the presence of in excess of 500 unauthorized dumps across England, encompassing at minimum 11 so-called "super sites" bigger than 20,000 metric tons.

A representative for the environment agency commented that the apprehensions were for ecological and money laundering offences and constituted a "vital step" in ongoing inquiries. The two individuals have been let go on conditional release.

Size of the Issue

The illegal site in the Kidlington area, positioned between the River Cherwell and the A34 highway, is believed to house around 21,000 tonnes of rubbish in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) in height.

This pile of waste is made up of what seems to be processed household rubbish, shredded plastic materials, expanded polystyrene, automobile tires and assorted everyday items.

It represents just a single of 517 unlawful sites across the country, at a minimum of 11 of which hold over 20,000 metric tons of garbage. These include a 280,000-tonne area in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire county and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne tip in Kent.

The overall figure of such major sites is expected to be greater, as the environment authority has previously stated it does not possess information on volume for every unlawful tip.

Most such locations are in countryside locations, frequently concealed, and on land that is intended to be arable property.

Criminal Enterprise

Authorities report numerous are operated by organized crime groups, who are generating money by demanding much less than legitimate operators to take and dispose of rubbish.

Firms have to be liable for site fees to use licensed landfill sites, depending on the amount and type of refuse they are trying to discard, and landfill tax is also levied at just over £126 per metric ton.

Local Anger

Preparatory work to clear the Kidlington dump started earlier this month amid worries over the potential of combustion and the effect that would have on the nearby A-road.

A commercial waste removal contractor has been awarded the job to deal with the location over the next 12 months at a cost of £9.6m.

An compliance official for the national regulatory division said that the body would be looking to recover the clean-up costs under proceeds of crime legislation from any party ultimately convicted at the termination of its current case.

She added that these arrests would help "drive the inquiry forward" and allow authorities to "pursue more lines of inquiry to ascertain in detail what occurred and who was implicated".

"This unlawful tip at this location was an atrocious and calculated attack on our natural surroundings and the authorities share the local outrage at this terrible act," she remarked.

A senior official supported the arrests, stating: "The unauthorized tipping of rubbish at Kidlington is utterly appalling and has led to significant detriment to the environment and distress to the local population.

"The administration is pledged to eliminating this type of illegal activity throughout the UK, by augmenting resources to combat illegal dumping, hiring more staff and implementing more severe measures and sanctions for those who break the regulations."

The detentions were executed on Thursday by officers from a dedicated organised crime squad and follow an earlier apprehension of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area in the autumn. He was released subject to additional enquiries.