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A pair of individuals have been taken into custody as an element of an investigation into the illegal deposit of many thousands of tons of refuse in a field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Officials indicated that a man in his late sixties was detained at a residence in Hampshire's Andover, while a 54-year-old was detained in Slough, Berkshire in connection with the huge mound of waste dumped near Kidlington.

These apprehensions come after a previous investigation which uncovered the existence of in excess of 500 illegal sites throughout England, featuring at least 11 so-called "major sites" larger than 20,000 metric tons.

A spokeswoman for the regulatory body stated that the arrests were for ecological and proceeds of crime crimes and represented a "crucial step" in continuing inquiries. The apprehended men have been let go on conditional release.

Magnitude of the Problem

The illegal site in the Kidlington area, positioned between the river Cherwell and the A34, is thought to contain about 21,000 tons of waste in a pile which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) in height.

This pile of rubbish is made up of what seems to be treated residential refuse, chopped up plastic items, expanded polystyrene, tires and assorted domestic items.

It is just one example of 517 illegal dumps across England, at least 11 of which are estimated to hold more than 20,000 tonnes of waste. Such sites include a 280,000-tonne location in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne areas in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The total number of such larger dumps is expected to be higher, as the regulatory body has previously stated it does not hold data on volume for each unlawful dump.

A large proportion of these sites are in countryside areas, frequently out of sight, and on land that should be agricultural ground.

Criminal Operations

Authorities state a significant number are managed by criminal organizations, who are making profit by demanding significantly less than legitimate operators to accept and landfill garbage.

Companies have to be liable for site fees to use lawful landfill sites, depending on the amount and category of material they are trying to discard, and landfill tax is also applied at just over £126 per metric ton.

Community Frustration

Initial work to remove the affected location commenced earlier this month due to concerns over the threat of blaze and the impact that would have on the close-by highway.

A private clean-up firm has been given the task to deal with the site over the following 12 months at a expense of £9.6m.

An compliance officer for the government environment unit stated that the body would be aiming to recover the remediation costs under proceeds of crime legislation from anyone successfully convicted at the termination of its active inquiry.

She further stated that these apprehensions would help "move the investigation forward" and allow authorities to "pursue more avenues to understand in detail what transpired and who was implicated".

"This unlawful dump at Kidlington was an atrocious and intentional attack on our environment and we share the community's outrage at this terrible offence," she stated.

A government minister supported the detentions, adding: "This unauthorized deposit of waste at the site is disgraceful and has led to significant detriment to the environment and distress to the nearby residents.

"The authorities is committed to eliminating this kind of criminality across the country, by augmenting funds to combat waste crime, hiring more staff and implementing tougher checks and penalties for those who violate the law."

The detentions were carried out on the specified day by officers from a dedicated organised crime unit and come after an earlier detention of a man in his thirties from the Guildford area area in last November. He was set free subject to additional enquiries.