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Two men have been detained as a component of an probe into the tipping of many thousands of metric tons of refuse in a rural field in Oxfordshire, England.

Officials reported that a man in his late sixties was apprehended at a property in Hampshire's Andover, while a 54-year-old was taken into custody in the town of Slough in connection with the massive heap of waste deposited near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These arrests follow a previous investigation which exposed the presence of in excess of 500 illegal sites throughout England, featuring at minimum 11 so-called "large-scale sites" bigger than 20,000 tonnes.

A representative for the environment authorities commented that the arrests were for ecological and financial crimes and represented a "crucial step" in active probes. Both men have been let go on pre-trial release.

Size of the Problem

The dump in near Kidlington, situated between the Cherwell River and the A34 road, is thought to house approximately 21,000 tonnes of rubbish 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 treated domestic waste, fragmented plastic materials, expanded polystyrene, tires and various domestic items.

It is just a single of 517 illegal sites throughout England, at least 11 of which are estimated to hold over 20,000 metric tons of waste. Such sites include a 280,000-tonne site in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The actual figure of such major dumps is probably to be larger, as the environment agency has previously acknowledged it does not hold records on tonnage for every illegal tip.

A large proportion of these sites are in countryside areas, typically concealed, and on land that is intended to be agricultural ground.

Criminal Enterprise

Police say many are managed by organised crime gangs, who are earning cash by demanding far less than lawful firms to take and dispose of waste.

Companies have to pay gate fees to use lawful disposal sites, based on the volume and nature of material they are trying to get rid of, and a disposal levy is also levied at just over £126 per ton.

Local Outrage

Preparatory operations to remove the Kidlington location began in recent weeks due to worries over the threat of combustion and the impact that would have on the close-by major road.

A private waste clearance firm has been given the task to deal with the site over the coming 12 months period at a cost of £9.6m.

An compliance officer for the country's environmental crime unit said that the body would be seeking to recover the clean-up expenses under proceeds of crime acts from anyone prosecuted at the end of its active investigation.

She further stated that the recent arrests would help "move the probe forward" and enable officials to "investigate more avenues to determine in detail what transpired and who was implicated".

"The unauthorized site at Kidlington was an appalling and intentional attack on our ecology and officials share the community's anger at this horrific offence," she remarked.

A senior minister praised the detentions, commenting: "The unauthorized deposit of rubbish at Kidlington is utterly appalling and has resulted in significant damage to the environment and distress to the nearby residents.

"Our government is committed to eradicating this category of criminality in the nation, by boosting funds to tackle environmental crime, recruiting more staff and enacting tougher controls and sanctions for those who violate the regulations."

The arrests were executed on a recent Thursday by personnel from a dedicated crime team and are in addition to an previous arrest of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area region in last November. He was set free awaiting further inquiries.