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Two individuals have been detained as part of an probe into the tipping of several thousand of metric tons of refuse in a open field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Law enforcement stated that a 69-year-old was arrested at a property in Hampshire's Andover, while a man in his fifties was detained in the town of Slough in connection with the huge pile of garbage dumped near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These apprehensions come after a recent investigation which uncovered the operation of in excess of 500 illegal tips in England, including at minimum 11 so-called "super sites" greater than 20,000 metric tons.

A official for the environmental agency commented that the arrests were for ecological and proceeds of crime offences and represented a "vital step" in ongoing inquiries. The apprehended men have been set free on conditional release.

Scale of the Issue

The dump in Kidlington, located between the river Cherwell and the A34 highway, is believed to contain around 21,000 tonnes of waste in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) lengthwise and 6m (20ft) in height.

This pile of waste is composed of what seems to be sorted household waste, chopped up plastics, expanded polystyrene, tyres and other domestic articles.

It represents just one example of 517 illegal tips in England, at minimum 11 of which contain in excess of 20,000 tonnes of garbage. They encompass a 280,000-tonne area in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The overall number of such larger sites is expected to be larger, as the regulatory body has earlier indicated it does not maintain records on tonnage for all illegal tip.

Most these sites are in agricultural areas, often out of sight, and on land that is intended to be arable ground.

Criminal Operations

Authorities report a significant number are run by organized crime groups, who are generating cash by demanding far less than legitimate companies to take and bury rubbish.

Companies have to be liable for disposal fees to use lawful waste facilities, depending on the volume and category of waste they are trying to get rid of, and a disposal levy is also charged at just over £126 per ton.

Public Outrage

Initial operations to clear the Kidlington location commenced in recent weeks due to concerns over the risk of combustion and the effect that would have on the close-by highway.

A commercial clean-up contractor has been granted the task to handle the site over the following 12 months at a expense of £9.6m.

An enforcement officer for the government environmental crime division stated that the authority would be looking to recover the clearance expenses under proceeds of crime acts from anyone convicted at the termination of its active investigation.

She further stated that these arrests would help "drive the inquiry forward" and allow the agency to "pursue more leads to ascertain exactly what transpired and who was implicated".

"The unlawful dump at the site was an appalling and intentional affront on our environment and we empathize with the local frustration at this terrible act," she stated.

A government representative welcomed the actions, commenting: "The unlawful deposit of garbage at this location is utterly appalling and has resulted in significant damage to the environment and anguish to the local community.

"Our authorities is pledged to eradicating this category of illegal activity in the country, by boosting resources to address illegal dumping, hiring more personnel and implementing stricter checks and sanctions for those who flout the law."

The arrests were executed on Thursday by personnel from a regional serious crime team and are in addition to an prior apprehension of a man in his thirties from the Surrey region in the autumn. He was set free subject to more investigations.