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Two individuals have been taken into custody as an element of an probe into the illegal deposit of thousands of metric tons of waste in a open field in Oxfordshire.

Law enforcement reported that a 69-year-old was arrested at a property in Hampshire's Andover, while a 54-year-old was taken into custody in the town of Slough in relation with the massive mound of waste deposited near the area of Kidlington.

These arrests follow a recent investigation which uncovered the existence of over 500 unauthorized dumps throughout England, including at least 11 so-called "super sites" bigger than 20,000 tonnes.

A official for the regulatory agency commented that the arrests were for environmental and money laundering violations and represented a "key step" in active probes. The two individuals have been set free on pre-trial release.

Scale of the Problem

The illegal site in near Kidlington, located between the Cherwell River and the A34 road, is thought to hold approximately 21,000 metric tons of refuse in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) lengthwise and 6m (20ft) high.

This pile of garbage is made up of what looks to be processed residential rubbish, fragmented plastic materials, polystyrene, automobile tires and various everyday articles.

It is just one example of 517 unauthorized sites across the country, at a minimum of 11 of which are estimated to hold over 20,000 tonnes of waste. Such sites feature a 280,000-tonne area in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne areas in Lancashire county and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne tip in Kent.

The total amount of such bigger locations is probably to be higher, as the environmental body has earlier stated it does not hold records on volume for every illegal site.

A large proportion of sites are in rural settings, often concealed, and on land that should be farm ground.

Organised Activity

Law enforcement report a significant number are run by organized crime groups, who are generating cash by charging significantly less than licensed companies to accept and bury waste.

Firms have to pay site fees to use lawful landfill sites, contingent on the quantity and type of waste they are trying to get rid of, and landfill tax is also applied at just over £126 per ton.

Local Frustration

Preparatory operations to clear the Kidlington dump began in recent weeks following fears over the potential of blaze and the effect that would have on the close-by highway.

A contracted clean-up company has been given the contract to deal with the area over the following 12 months at a expense of £9.6m.

An enforcement official for the government regulatory team said that the authority would be looking to claim back the clean-up funds under confiscation acts from any party ultimately convicted at the end of its ongoing inquiry.

She added that this week's detentions would help "drive the investigation forward" and allow authorities to "investigate more lines of inquiry to ascertain in detail what happened and who was involved".

"The illegal dump at this location was an appalling and intentional affront on our ecology and officials understand the community's outrage at this horrific act," she stated.

A government minister supported the actions, commenting: "The illegal dumping of rubbish at Kidlington is appalling and has caused significant damage to the ecology and anguish to the local residents.

"The administration is committed to eliminating this kind of criminality across the country, by boosting financing to combat waste crime, employing more officers and enacting tougher measures and penalties for those who flout the regulations."

The detentions were executed on Thursday by officers from a specialist organised crime unit and are in addition to an previous detention of a man in his thirties from the Guildford region in November. He was let go pending further enquiries.