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Two individuals have been taken into custody as a component of an inquiry into the illegal deposit of several thousand of tons of waste in a open field in Oxfordshire.

Authorities stated that a 69-year-old was detained at a dwelling in Hampshire's Andover, while a 54-year-old was taken into custody in Slough in relation with the enormous mound of waste dumped near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These detentions come after a prior investigation which revealed the operation of in excess of 500 unlawful sites in England, including at minimum 11 so-called "major sites" bigger than 20,000 tons.

A representative for the environmental authorities said that the detentions were for ecological and money laundering crimes and represented a "vital step" in continuing investigations. The apprehended men have been let go on conditional release.

Magnitude of the Issue

The dump in the Kidlington area, positioned between the river Cherwell and the A34 highway, is thought to hold approximately 21,000 tons of rubbish in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) high.

This heap of waste is consists of what looks to be sorted household rubbish, fragmented plastic materials, Styrofoam, tires and assorted household items.

It is just one example of 517 unlawful sites in England, at least 11 of which hold in excess of 20,000 metric tons of rubbish. These feature a 280,000-tonne location in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne areas in Lancashire and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne tip in the county of Kent.

The overall number of such major sites is likely to be higher, as the environment body has previously acknowledged it does not possess records on volume for each unlawful site.

A large proportion of such locations are in agricultural areas, frequently hidden, and on land that is zoned as agricultural ground.

Organised Activity

Police report a significant number are run by criminal organizations, who are generating cash by charging much less than legitimate companies to take and dispose of rubbish.

Companies have to incur site fees to use lawful disposal sites, contingent on the quantity and type of refuse they are trying to get rid of, and landfill tax is also charged at just over £126 per tonne.

Public Frustration

Preparation work to clean up the affected location started earlier this month following worries over the risk of fire and the impact that would have on the close-by major road.

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

An investigations official for the national environmental crime division stated that the body would be aiming to recover the remediation funds under asset recovery laws from anyone successfully prosecuted at the end of its active case.

She added that this week's arrests would help "drive the inquiry forward" and enable the agency to "pursue more lines of inquiry to ascertain precisely what happened and who was implicated".

"This unlawful site at this location was an appalling and deliberate assault on our ecology and officials share the public's frustration at this horrific act," she remarked.

A cabinet official supported the detentions, stating: "The unlawful deposit of garbage at the site is utterly appalling and has led to considerable damage to the environment and distress to the surrounding population.

"Our administration is pledged to stamping out this kind of criminality throughout the nation, by boosting funds to tackle waste crime, recruiting more officers and enacting more severe measures and fines for those who violate the regulations."

The apprehensions were executed on a recent Thursday by personnel from a specialist organised crime unit and follow an previous detention of a 39-year-old from the Guildford region in last November. He was set free awaiting additional enquiries.