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Two individuals have been arrested as a component of an investigation into the tipping of many thousands of metric tons of refuse in a field in Oxfordshire, England.

Officials indicated that a man in his late sixties was arrested at a property in the town of Andover, while a 54-year-old was taken into custody in the town of Slough in connection with the huge heap of rubbish dumped near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These arrests follow a recent report which revealed the operation of more than 500 unlawful sites throughout England, featuring at a minimum of 11 so-called "large-scale sites" bigger than 20,000 tonnes.

A spokeswoman for the regulatory agency said that the arrests were for environment-related and financial violations and were a "vital step" in ongoing inquiries. The apprehended men have been set free on bail.

Scale of the Problem

The dump in near Kidlington, positioned between the River Cherwell and the A34 highway, is estimated to house about 21,000 tons of refuse in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) lengthwise and 6m (20ft) in height.

This pile of garbage is composed of what seems to be processed domestic waste, chopped up plastic materials, Styrofoam, tires and various everyday items.

It is just one example of 517 unauthorized tips in the country, at minimum 11 of which are estimated to hold more than 20,000 tonnes of waste. They include a 280,000-tonne site in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire county and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne site in the county of Kent.

The total amount of such bigger dumps is expected to be higher, as the regulatory authority has previously stated it does not hold data on volume for each unauthorized site.

The majority such locations are in countryside areas, often out of sight, and on land that is intended to be arable ground.

Organized Enterprise

Law enforcement state a significant number are run by organized crime groups, who are earning cash by demanding significantly less than licensed operators to receive and bury rubbish.

Firms have to incur site fees to use licensed landfill sites, contingent on the quantity and type of waste they are trying to dispose of, and a disposal levy is also charged at just over £126 per metric ton.

Public Outrage

Preparation operations to remove the Kidlington area location started earlier this month following worries over the risk of combustion and the effect that would have on the nearby major road.

A commercial waste removal firm has been awarded the job to handle the location over the following 12 months at a price of £9.6m.

An enforcement officer for the government regulatory unit commented that the agency would be looking to recoup the clean-up expenses under asset recovery acts from any party ultimately prosecuted at the conclusion of its ongoing investigation.

She further stated that these arrests would help "drive the probe forward" and allow officials to "pursue more leads to ascertain in detail what occurred and who was implicated".

"This unlawful tip at Kidlington was an shocking and intentional attack on our ecology and the authorities empathize with the community's anger at this terrible offence," she said.

A senior minister supported the detentions, adding: "The illegal tipping of waste at this location is disgraceful and has led to significant harm to the environment and upset to the local community.

"The government is pledged to eradicating this kind of illegal activity across the nation, by increasing resources to tackle illegal dumping, hiring more staff and implementing stricter controls and penalties for those who flout the regulations."

The apprehensions were made on Thursday by agents from a specialist crime squad and follow an earlier arrest of a man in his thirties from the Guildford area region in November. He was released pending further investigations.