Arrests Executed in Connection to Enormous Unlawful Waste Site

A pair of individuals have been arrested as an element of an investigation into the illegal deposit of thousands of metric tons of refuse in a field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Officials stated that a man in his late sixties was apprehended at a property in the town of Andover, while a 54-year-old was detained in Slough, Berkshire in association with the huge pile of rubbish deposited near Kidlington.

These detentions follow a previous revelation which revealed the operation of more than 500 illegal dumps throughout England, including at a minimum of 11 so-called "large-scale sites" bigger than 20,000 metric tons.

A spokeswoman for the regulatory agency said that the arrests were for environment-related and proceeds of crime offences and were a "crucial step" in active inquiries. The two individuals have been released on pre-trial release.

Size of the Situation

The dump in Kidlington, positioned between the river Cherwell and the A34 road, is thought to contain around 21,000 metric tons of refuse in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) lengthwise and 6m (20ft) high.

This mound of waste is consists of what appears to be sorted domestic waste, chopped up plastic items, expanded polystyrene, tyres and various domestic objects.

It is just a single of 517 unauthorized tips throughout England, at a minimum of 11 of which are estimated to hold more than 20,000 tons of rubbish. These feature a 280,000-tonne site in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne site in the county of Kent.

The actual number of such major sites is likely to be higher, as the environmental body has previously indicated it does not maintain records on tonnage for every unauthorized site.

A large proportion of sites are in rural settings, often concealed, and on land that is zoned as agricultural property.

Criminal Enterprise

Police say a significant number are operated by organized crime groups, who are generating cash by asking for far less than lawful operators to receive and bury rubbish.

Businesses have to incur gate fees to use lawful waste facilities, depending on the quantity and nature of refuse they are trying to dispose of, and a waste tax is also applied at just over £126 per tonne.

Community Frustration

Preparation work to remove the Kidlington area location commenced in recent weeks amid worries over the risk of blaze and the consequences that would have on the nearby highway.

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

An compliance officer for the country's environmental crime division said that the authority would be aiming to recover the clearance costs under asset recovery acts from anyone successfully prosecuted at the conclusion of its current investigation.

She further stated that the recent apprehensions would help "move the probe forward" and enable the agency to "pursue more avenues to determine exactly what happened and who was involved".

"This illegal tip at Kidlington was an shocking and intentional affront on our environment and we empathize with the community's anger at this horrific act," she stated.

A senior minister praised the actions, commenting: "The illegal tipping of garbage at Kidlington is disgraceful and has caused significant damage to the ecology and upset to the surrounding population.

"The administration is dedicated to eliminating this type of crime throughout the UK, by augmenting funds to combat environmental crime, employing more personnel and implementing stricter measures and penalties for those who violate the rules."

The arrests were carried out on a recent Thursday by personnel from a regional organised crime squad and follow an prior arrest of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area area in the autumn. He was released awaiting more investigations.