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A pair of individuals have been taken into custody as an element of an inquiry into the dumping of thousands of metric tons of refuse in a rural field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Authorities indicated that a 69-year-old was detained at a residence in the town of Andover, while a 54-year-old was taken into custody in the town of Slough in association with the huge pile of rubbish dumped near Kidlington.

These arrests follow a prior report which revealed the operation of more than 500 unauthorized tips across the country of England, featuring at a minimum of 11 so-called "large-scale sites" greater than 20,000 metric tons.

A spokeswoman for the environment authorities commented that the detentions were for ecological and proceeds of crime violations and represented a "key step" in ongoing probes. Both men have been let go on conditional release.

Magnitude of the Situation

The tipping ground in the Kidlington area, situated between the River Cherwell and the A34 highway, is thought to contain about 21,000 tons of waste in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) in height.

This pile of waste is consists of what looks to be treated household waste, chopped up plastic materials, polystyrene, tires and assorted everyday items.

It is just one example of 517 illegal sites throughout England, at minimum 11 of which contain over 20,000 metric tons of waste. They include a 280,000-tonne location in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne site in the county of Kent.

The actual amount of such larger dumps is probably to be larger, as the regulatory authority has in the past acknowledged it does not maintain data on weight for every unlawful site.

The majority sites are in rural areas, typically concealed, and on land that should be agricultural property.

Criminal Enterprise

Authorities report a significant number are run by organized crime groups, who are earning money by asking for much less than licensed firms to accept and landfill rubbish.

Companies have to pay gate fees to use licensed disposal sites, depending on the quantity and nature of waste they are trying to discard, and a disposal levy is also applied at just over £126 per ton.

Public Outrage

Preparatory operations to clean up the Kidlington area location began recently following worries over the threat of blaze and the impact that would have on the adjacent major road.

A private waste removal firm has been awarded the task to handle the area over the next 12 months at a expense of £9.6m.

An investigations official for the government regulatory team stated that the authority would be seeking to recover the clean-up expenses under confiscation legislation from anyone ultimately found guilty at the termination of its ongoing case.

She added that the recent arrests would help "drive the investigation forward" and allow officials to "investigate more lines of inquiry to ascertain in detail what transpired and who was implicated".

"This unlawful tip at the site was an shocking and intentional attack on our ecology and we understand the local outrage at this terrible offence," she remarked.

A government representative praised the actions, adding: "This unauthorized tipping of garbage at the site is disgraceful and has caused considerable harm to the natural world and distress to the surrounding population.

"The government is pledged to stamping out this type of illegal activity throughout the nation, by augmenting funds to tackle illegal dumping, hiring more staff and enacting more severe checks and sanctions for those who break the regulations."

The apprehensions were carried out on the specified day by agents from a dedicated crime unit and are in addition to an earlier detention of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area region in the autumn. He was released awaiting additional investigations.