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Two individuals have been taken into custody as an element of an inquiry into the tipping of several thousand of tons of rubbish in a rural field in Oxfordshire, England.

Officials indicated that a 69-year-old was arrested at a residence in Andover, Hampshire, while a 54-year-old was arrested in the town of Slough in connection with the huge heap of garbage tipped near Kidlington.

These detentions come after a previous investigation which uncovered the existence of more than 500 illegal sites throughout England, featuring at a minimum of 11 so-called "major sites" larger than 20,000 metric tons.

A spokeswoman for the regulatory body stated that the apprehensions were for environmental and financial crimes and constituted a "vital step" in ongoing probes. The apprehended men have been set free on conditional release.

Scale of the Issue

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 pile which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) high.

This heap of garbage is consists of what appears to be processed household refuse, fragmented plastic materials, expanded polystyrene, tyres and assorted household objects.

It is just a single of 517 unlawful tips across England, at a minimum of 11 of which hold in excess of 20,000 tons of rubbish. Such sites encompass a 280,000-tonne location in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire county and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The total amount of such major sites is expected to be greater, as the environmental authority has in the past stated it does not possess records on tonnage for all unlawful dump.

The majority sites are in countryside areas, frequently concealed, and on land that is zoned as agricultural ground.

Organized Operations

Authorities say numerous are run by organised crime gangs, who are earning profit by demanding significantly less than legitimate companies to accept and landfill garbage.

Companies have to pay gate fees to use licensed disposal sites, based on the amount and nature of refuse they are trying to dispose of, and a disposal levy is also charged at just over £126 per tonne.

Public Frustration

Initial operations to clear the Kidlington area site began recently following worries over the potential of fire and the impact that would have on the close-by highway.

A contracted waste removal contractor has been given the task to remediate the location over the next 12 months at a expense of £9.6m.

An compliance officer for the national regulatory unit commented that the authority would be looking to recover the clean-up costs under confiscation acts from anyone successfully found guilty at the conclusion of its current inquiry.

She added that these detentions would help "drive the inquiry forward" and allow authorities to "pursue more leads to ascertain exactly what transpired and who was implicated".

"This unauthorized tip at Kidlington was an shocking and intentional affront on our natural surroundings and we share the local frustration at this egregious act," she said.

A cabinet official welcomed the detentions, commenting: "This unlawful tipping of waste at this location is utterly appalling and has resulted in significant harm to the ecology and upset to the nearby population.

"The administration is pledged to stamping out this kind of illegal activity in the UK, by boosting resources to tackle illegal dumping, recruiting more officers and implementing more severe checks and fines for those who flout the law."

The detentions were executed on Thursday by officers from a regional organised crime unit and are in addition to an prior detention of a man in his thirties from the Surrey area in the autumn. He was released pending more investigations.