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Two individuals have been detained as part of an inquiry into the tipping of thousands of tonnes of refuse in a open field in Oxfordshire, England.

Officials stated that a 69-year-old was apprehended at a dwelling in the town of Andover, while a man in his fifties was detained in Slough in association with the massive mound of rubbish dumped near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These detentions follow a recent investigation which exposed the presence of over 500 illegal dumps throughout England, including at a minimum of 11 so-called "major sites" greater than 20,000 metric tons.

A spokeswoman for the environment agency said that the arrests were for environmental and proceeds of crime crimes and represented a "crucial step" in active probes. The apprehended men have been set free on pre-trial release.

Size of the Issue

The tipping ground in near Kidlington, located between the River Cherwell and the A34 highway, is estimated to contain about 21,000 tonnes of rubbish in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) lengthwise and 6m (20ft) tall.

This pile of waste is composed of what appears to be sorted domestic rubbish, fragmented plastic materials, expanded polystyrene, automobile tires and assorted domestic objects.

It represents just one of 517 unlawful tips across England, at least 11 of which hold over 20,000 metric tons of waste. Such sites encompass a 280,000-tonne site in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne tip in the county of Kent.

The overall number of such larger sites is probably to be larger, as the environment agency has earlier acknowledged it does not maintain data on tonnage for each unauthorized dump.

A large proportion of such locations are in agricultural areas, frequently out of sight, and on land that is zoned as agricultural ground.

Criminal Enterprise

Police state a significant number are managed by organized crime groups, who are earning profit by charging much less than lawful firms to take and dispose of waste.

Companies have to pay site fees to use licensed disposal sites, based on the quantity and nature of material they are trying to dispose of, and landfill tax is also levied at just over £126 per ton.

Community Outrage

Initial work to clear the affected location began recently amid fears over the threat of fire and the effect that would have on the nearby major road.

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

An enforcement officer for the national environment division said that the agency would be aiming to claim back the clean-up expenses under proceeds of crime acts from any party successfully prosecuted at the end of its current case.

She further stated that this week's detentions would help "move the probe forward" and permit the agency to "follow more avenues to ascertain exactly what transpired and who was implicated".

"The unlawful dump at this location was an appalling and calculated assault on our environment and officials share the community's anger at this egregious crime," she said.

A government representative welcomed the detentions, commenting: "The illegal deposit of waste at this location is utterly appalling and has resulted in significant harm to the ecology and upset to the nearby population.

"The authorities is committed to eliminating this category of illegal activity across the country, by augmenting resources to combat environmental crime, recruiting more personnel and implementing stricter measures and sanctions for those who flout the law."

The arrests were made on Thursday by officers from a regional serious crime unit and are in addition to an previous detention of a man in his thirties from the Guildford area area in November. He was released subject to further enquiries.