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A pair of individuals have been arrested as part of an investigation into the dumping of thousands of tons of waste in a open field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Authorities indicated that a man in his late sixties was apprehended at a residence in Andover, Hampshire, while a man in his fifties was taken into custody in Slough in connection with the enormous heap of garbage tipped near Kidlington.

These apprehensions occur a week after a prior report which exposed the existence of over 500 unlawful dumps across England, featuring at least 11 so-called "major sites" bigger than 20,000 tons.

A spokeswoman for the environment body stated that the detentions were for environmental and financial offences and were a "key step" in continuing probes. The apprehended men have been let go on pre-trial release.

Scale of the Problem

The tipping ground in near Kidlington, situated between the river Cherwell and the A34, is estimated to hold approximately 21,000 metric tons of refuse in a pile which is up to 150m (490ft) lengthwise and 6m (20ft) tall.

This mound of rubbish is composed of what looks to be sorted residential refuse, chopped up plastic items, expanded polystyrene, tyres and assorted everyday objects.

It is just a single of 517 unlawful sites throughout England, at a minimum of 11 of which are estimated to hold in excess of 20,000 metric tons of rubbish. Such sites feature a 280,000-tonne area in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne dump in Kent.

The total number of such larger dumps is likely to be larger, as the environmental body has in the past indicated it does not maintain information on weight for every unlawful site.

The majority such locations are in countryside settings, often concealed, and on land that should be farm ground.

Criminal Activity

Police say numerous are operated by organised crime gangs, who are making money by demanding significantly less than legitimate firms to take and landfill garbage.

Businesses have to incur site fees to use licensed disposal sites, contingent on the quantity and type of material they are trying to discard, and landfill tax is also applied at just over £126 per ton.

Public Frustration

Preparation operations to clear the affected site started earlier this month due to worries over the risk of blaze and the effect that would have on the close-by major road.

A commercial waste clearance contractor has been granted the job to handle the area over the following 12 months period at a expense of £9.6m.

An compliance officer for the national environment unit said that the authority would be seeking to recoup the clean-up expenses under asset recovery laws from any individual ultimately found guilty at the termination of its active inquiry.

She added that these apprehensions would help "move the investigation forward" and allow officials to "investigate more avenues to determine exactly what occurred and who was involved".

"This unauthorized tip at the site was an atrocious and calculated assault on our ecology and we empathize with the local frustration at this egregious act," she said.

A senior minister welcomed the actions, stating: "This unlawful tipping of rubbish at Kidlington is utterly appalling and has resulted in significant harm to the ecology and upset to the surrounding residents.

"Our administration is pledged to eradicating this category of illegal activity in the UK, by augmenting financing to combat environmental crime, hiring more officers and enacting stricter measures and penalties for those who violate the law."

The arrests were carried out on Thursday by agents from a specialist organised crime unit and come after an prior detention of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area area in November. He was set free subject to further inquiries.