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A pair of individuals have been arrested as part of an probe into the tipping of many thousands of tonnes of rubbish in a rural field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Authorities indicated that a 69-year-old was detained at a property in the town of Andover, while a 54-year-old was detained in the town of Slough in association with the huge mound of waste dumped near the area of Kidlington.

These detentions occur a week after a previous investigation which uncovered the presence of over 500 unlawful dumps across the country of England, including at least 11 so-called "major sites" larger than 20,000 metric tons.

A official for the environment body said that the apprehensions were for environment-related and proceeds of crime offences and were a "crucial step" in ongoing investigations. The apprehended men have been let go on bail.

Size of the Issue

The tipping ground in near Kidlington, situated between the River Cherwell and the A34 road, is believed to contain approximately 21,000 tonnes of refuse in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) tall.

This pile of garbage is consists of what seems to be treated domestic refuse, fragmented plastics, expanded polystyrene, tyres and various household items.

It is just a single of 517 unauthorized sites across the country, at minimum 11 of which hold more than 20,000 tons of waste. Such sites encompass a 280,000-tonne location in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire county and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne dump in Kent.

The overall figure of such bigger sites is expected to be greater, as the environmental agency has in the past acknowledged it does not maintain information on volume for all unauthorized site.

The majority these sites are in agricultural locations, often concealed, and on land that should be arable land.

Organised Activity

Law enforcement say numerous are run by organized crime groups, who are earning profit by asking for significantly less than legitimate companies to receive and landfill garbage.

Firms have to be liable for disposal fees to use legitimate landfill sites, depending on the quantity and category of material they are trying to get rid of, and a waste tax is also applied at just over £126 per tonne.

Community Outrage

Preparatory efforts to remove the Kidlington dump commenced in recent weeks due to concerns over the threat of combustion and the consequences that would have on the close-by highway.

A contracted clean-up contractor has been given the contract to handle the area over the next 12 months at a cost of £9.6m.

An enforcement manager for the government environmental crime team said that the body would be looking to claim back the clean-up costs under proceeds of crime laws from any party prosecuted at the end of its current case.

She added that this week's arrests would help "push the investigation forward" and allow officials to "follow more lines of inquiry to understand exactly what occurred and who was implicated".

"The illegal site at the site was an shocking and deliberate assault on our ecology and the authorities understand the community's outrage at this terrible act," she said.

A government representative praised the arrests, stating: "The unlawful dumping of garbage at Kidlington is disgraceful and has caused substantial damage to the ecology and upset to the nearby residents.

"The authorities is committed to eradicating this type of illegal activity across the country, by increasing funds to address waste crime, recruiting more staff and introducing tougher checks and fines for those who flout the regulations."

The apprehensions were executed on a recent Thursday by agents from a specialist serious crime team and follow an prior arrest of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area region in November. He was released subject to more investigations.