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Two individuals have been arrested as an element of an inquiry into the tipping of several thousand of tons of refuse in a open field in Oxfordshire.

Officials indicated that a 69-year-old was detained at a residence in the town of Andover, while a 54-year-old was detained in the town of Slough in connection with the massive heap of garbage deposited near the area of Kidlington.

These arrests occur a week after a prior report which uncovered the operation of more than 500 unauthorized sites throughout the country of England, encompassing at minimum 11 so-called "super sites" larger than 20,000 tons.

A spokeswoman for the environment agency commented that the detentions were for environment-related and financial crimes and represented a "key step" in continuing inquiries. The two individuals have been set free on pre-trial release.

Scale of the Situation

The dump in near Kidlington, situated between the Cherwell River and the A34 highway, is estimated to hold about 21,000 metric tons of refuse in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) tall.

This mound of rubbish is made up of what seems to be processed residential rubbish, chopped up plastics, polystyrene, automobile tires and various everyday objects.

It constitutes just a single of 517 unauthorized tips in the country, at minimum 11 of which hold over 20,000 tonnes of rubbish. Such sites encompass a 280,000-tonne site in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire county and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The total number of such major dumps is probably to be higher, as the regulatory authority has earlier stated it does not maintain records on tonnage for each unlawful dump.

A large proportion of these sites are in countryside settings, typically concealed, and on land that is zoned as farm ground.

Organised Enterprise

Authorities say a significant number are managed by organized crime groups, who are earning money by charging much less than licensed operators to take and bury garbage.

Firms have to be liable for gate fees to use licensed waste facilities, based on the quantity and category of waste they are trying to get rid of, and landfill tax is also charged at just over £126 per metric ton.

Community Anger

Initial work to clean up the affected location commenced earlier this month amid fears over the risk of blaze and the consequences that would have on the adjacent A-road.

A commercial waste clearance company has been granted the contract to deal with the area over the following 12 months at a expense of £9.6m.

An compliance official for the country's regulatory unit said that the agency would be looking to claim back the clearance expenses under proceeds of crime acts from anyone ultimately convicted at the end of its current case.

She added that these arrests would help "move the probe forward" and permit the agency to "follow more avenues to ascertain exactly what occurred and who was implicated".

"The unlawful site at this location was an appalling and calculated affront on our natural surroundings and officials understand the community's outrage at this egregious offence," she said.

A government representative welcomed the detentions, commenting: "This illegal dumping of garbage at the site is utterly appalling and has caused substantial harm to the natural world and anguish to the surrounding population.

"Our administration is pledged to eradicating this type of criminality throughout the country, by boosting financing to combat waste crime, hiring more officers and implementing tougher measures and fines for those who violate the rules."

The detentions were executed on the specified day by agents from a regional crime squad and come after an previous detention of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area area in November. He was let go awaiting further investigations.