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Two men have been taken into custody as an element of an probe into the illegal deposit of many thousands of tons of refuse in a open field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Law enforcement stated that a man in his late sixties was arrested at a residence in Andover, Hampshire, while a 54-year-old was detained in Slough in relation with the huge pile of rubbish tipped near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These detentions occur a week after a recent report which uncovered the operation of in excess of 500 unauthorized dumps in the country of England, including at a minimum of 11 so-called "super sites" greater than 20,000 metric tons.

A official for the regulatory authorities said that the arrests were for environment-related and money laundering offences and constituted a "key step" in active inquiries. The two individuals have been set free on pre-trial release.

Scale of the Situation

The illegal site in near Kidlington, positioned between the River Cherwell and the A34 highway, is believed to contain approximately 21,000 tonnes of waste in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) high.

This mound of rubbish is composed of what looks to be processed household rubbish, shredded plastic items, Styrofoam, tires and various domestic objects.

It constitutes just a single of 517 unlawful tips across England, at minimum 11 of which hold more than 20,000 tonnes of waste. Such sites encompass a 280,000-tonne site in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne dump in Kent.

The total amount of such major dumps is expected to be larger, as the environment agency has previously acknowledged it does not hold information on tonnage for every unlawful tip.

Most these sites are in rural areas, frequently concealed, and on land that should be agricultural ground.

Organised Operations

Authorities state a significant number are operated by organised crime gangs, who are earning money by charging much less than licensed firms to receive and bury garbage.

Businesses have to be liable for gate fees to use lawful landfill sites, based on the quantity and type of waste they are trying to dispose of, and a disposal levy is also applied at just over £126 per ton.

Community Anger

Preparation work to remove the affected dump commenced earlier this month due to fears over the risk of blaze and the consequences that would have on the nearby A-road.

A private waste clearance contractor has been awarded the task to remediate the location over the next 12 months at a cost of £9.6m.

An investigations officer for the government environmental crime division commented that the authority would be seeking to recoup the clearance expenses under proceeds of crime laws from any party prosecuted at the termination of its ongoing investigation.

She added that this week's arrests would help "drive the investigation forward" and enable authorities to "investigate more lines of inquiry to ascertain precisely what transpired and who was implicated".

"This illegal site at this location was an atrocious and deliberate assault on our environment and we share the public's frustration at this terrible crime," she said.

A cabinet minister praised the actions, stating: "This illegal tipping of rubbish at this location is disgraceful and has led to significant damage to the environment and anguish to the surrounding community.

"The government is committed to eradicating this category of crime across the UK, by boosting funds to address environmental crime, employing more personnel and implementing tougher measures and fines for those who break the law."

The arrests were executed on the specified day by personnel from a specialist crime team and follow an earlier apprehension of a 39-year-old from the Guildford region in last November. He was set free subject to additional investigations.