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A pair of individuals have been detained as a component of an investigation into the dumping of many thousands of tons of rubbish in a open field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Authorities indicated that a 69-year-old was arrested at a property in Andover, Hampshire, while a 54-year-old was arrested in Slough in association with the enormous pile of garbage dumped near the area of Kidlington.

These arrests come after a recent report which uncovered the presence of over 500 unlawful dumps in the country of England, including at minimum 11 so-called "super sites" bigger than 20,000 tons.

A official for the environment body said that the arrests were for environment-related and financial violations and constituted a "crucial step" in active inquiries. Both men have been set free on conditional release.

Size of the Problem

The tipping ground in near Kidlington, located between the river Cherwell and the A34, is thought to house around 21,000 tonnes of waste in a pile which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) tall.

This pile of rubbish is consists of what looks to be sorted domestic refuse, shredded plastic items, expanded polystyrene, tyres and other household objects.

It is just one example of 517 unlawful tips in England, at a minimum of 11 of which contain in excess of 20,000 metric tons of waste. Such sites feature a 280,000-tonne site in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire county and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne tip in Kent.

The overall amount of such larger locations is expected to be larger, as the regulatory body has in the past indicated it does not maintain information on weight for all illegal site.

A large proportion of sites are in rural settings, typically concealed, and on land that is intended to be farm ground.

Organised Enterprise

Law enforcement state many are operated by criminal organizations, who are making profit by asking for much less than licensed operators to accept and landfill rubbish.

Companies have to be liable for gate fees to use licensed landfill sites, depending on the quantity and type of waste they are trying to discard, and a disposal levy is also levied at just over £126 per metric ton.

Community Frustration

Initial work to remove the Kidlington area site began recently amid fears over the potential of combustion and the consequences that would have on the close-by A-road.

A private clean-up firm has been granted the task to handle the location over the next 12 months at a cost of £9.6m.

An enforcement manager for the country's environment division stated that the agency would be aiming to recover the clearance funds under confiscation legislation from anyone convicted at the termination of its active case.

She further stated that this week's arrests would help "move the investigation forward" and allow authorities to "pursue more lines of inquiry to understand precisely what transpired and who was a party to it".

"This unlawful dump at Kidlington was an atrocious and deliberate attack on our ecology and officials empathize with the local anger at this terrible offence," she said.

A cabinet representative supported the arrests, adding: "The unlawful dumping of waste at the site is utterly appalling and has caused significant detriment to the ecology and upset to the nearby residents.

"Our administration is committed to stamping out this kind of illegal activity in the country, by augmenting resources to combat waste crime, recruiting more staff and implementing more severe controls and fines for those who flout the law."

The detentions were executed on a recent Thursday by agents from a specialist crime team and come after an earlier arrest of a 39-year-old from the Surrey area in the autumn. He was let go subject to further enquiries.