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Two men have been arrested as a component of an inquiry into the tipping of thousands of metric tons of waste in a field in Oxfordshire.

Authorities indicated that a man in his late sixties was apprehended at a property in Andover, Hampshire, while a man in his fifties was taken into custody in Slough, Berkshire in association with the massive heap of rubbish dumped near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These detentions come after a previous report which uncovered the existence of over 500 unauthorized tips throughout England, featuring at least 11 so-called "super sites" bigger than 20,000 metric tons.

A official for the environment agency commented that the detentions were for environmental and financial crimes and were a "vital step" in ongoing probes. Both men have been released on conditional release.

Scale of the Situation

The illegal site in Kidlington, positioned between the Cherwell River and the A34 road, is thought to contain around 21,000 metric tons of waste in a pile which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) tall.

This mound of garbage is composed of what appears to be sorted residential rubbish, chopped up plastics, polystyrene, automobile tires and other domestic objects.

It is just one example of 517 unlawful tips in England, at a minimum of 11 of which are estimated to hold more than 20,000 tons of garbage. These include a 280,000-tonne location in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne areas in Lancashire and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne tip in Kent.

The overall amount of such bigger locations is expected to be higher, as the environmental body has previously indicated it does not hold records on weight for all unlawful tip.

Most sites are in countryside settings, frequently hidden, and on land that is zoned as farm ground.

Criminal Enterprise

Law enforcement report numerous are run by criminal organizations, who are making profit by asking for much less than licensed firms to accept and dispose of waste.

Businesses have to incur disposal fees to use licensed landfill sites, contingent on the volume and category of refuse they are trying to dispose of, and a disposal levy is also charged at just over £126 per metric ton.

Public Frustration

Preparation work to clean up the Kidlington site started earlier this month amid worries over the risk of combustion and the effect that would have on the nearby highway.

A private waste removal company has been awarded the task to remediate the area over the following 12 months period at a cost of £9.6m.

An enforcement officer for the national environment unit stated that the body would be aiming to claim back the clearance expenses under proceeds of crime legislation from any party ultimately prosecuted at the end of its active case.

She further stated that the recent detentions would help "move the investigation forward" and enable the agency to "follow more lines of inquiry to understand exactly what occurred and who was involved".

"The illegal dump at this location was an atrocious and calculated affront on our ecology and the authorities share the local anger at this egregious act," she said.

A senior official supported the arrests, stating: "The unlawful deposit of rubbish at this location is disgraceful and has led to significant detriment to the natural world and distress to the local community.

"Our government is committed to eliminating this type of illegal activity across the nation, by augmenting financing to address illegal dumping, recruiting more staff and introducing more severe checks and sanctions for those who flout the regulations."

The detentions were executed on a recent Thursday by personnel from a regional organised crime squad and come after an earlier detention of a 39-year-old from the Surrey area in the autumn. He was let go pending further enquiries.