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A pair of individuals have been taken into custody as an element of an probe into the tipping of thousands of tonnes of rubbish in a open field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Officials stated that a man in his late sixties was arrested at a residence in Hampshire's Andover, while a man in his fifties was taken into custody in Slough in relation with the massive pile of waste tipped near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These detentions come after a previous investigation which uncovered the presence of in excess of 500 illegal tips throughout the country of England, including at a minimum of 11 so-called "super sites" larger than 20,000 tonnes.

A representative for the environment body commented that the apprehensions were for environmental and money laundering offences and represented a "crucial step" in continuing inquiries. The two individuals have been let go on pre-trial release.

Magnitude of the Situation

The tipping ground in Kidlington, positioned between the River Cherwell and the A34 highway, is thought to contain about 21,000 metric tons of waste in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) lengthwise and 6m (20ft) high.

This heap of garbage is composed of what seems to be treated residential waste, fragmented plastics, expanded polystyrene, tires and various everyday items.

It constitutes just one of 517 unlawful tips across England, at a minimum of 11 of which are estimated to hold in excess of 20,000 tons of waste. They encompass a 280,000-tonne area in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The actual amount of such larger sites is likely to be higher, as the environmental body has in the past acknowledged it does not hold data on volume for every unlawful site.

A large proportion of sites are in rural areas, typically concealed, and on land that should be arable property.

Criminal Activity

Authorities state many are operated by organized crime groups, who are making money by asking for significantly less than lawful companies to receive and dispose of waste.

Businesses have to incur site fees to use legitimate waste facilities, contingent on the volume and nature of material they are trying to get rid of, and a waste tax is also applied at just over £126 per tonne.

Public Anger

Initial work to remove the Kidlington area dump began recently due to concerns over the potential of blaze and the impact that would have on the adjacent major road.

A private clean-up firm has been given the contract to handle the site over the coming 12 months period at a expense of £9.6m.

An compliance official for the national environmental crime unit said that the body would be aiming to claim back the remediation expenses under asset recovery legislation from any individual successfully found guilty at the end of its ongoing inquiry.

She further stated that these apprehensions would help "push the probe forward" and permit authorities to "pursue more leads to ascertain exactly what occurred and who was a party to it".

"The unauthorized tip at this location was an appalling and intentional affront on our natural surroundings and we share the public's frustration at this terrible act," she said.

A senior representative praised the actions, commenting: "The unauthorized dumping of rubbish at Kidlington is disgraceful and has led to significant damage to the ecology and distress to the local population.

"The authorities is dedicated to eliminating this category of illegal activity throughout the UK, by augmenting financing to address waste crime, hiring more officers and implementing stricter checks and sanctions for those who break the law."

The apprehensions were executed on the specified day by agents from a regional serious crime team and follow an earlier detention of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area area in the autumn. He was released pending more enquiries.