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Two individuals have been arrested as part of an probe into the illegal deposit of many thousands of tons of waste in a field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Law enforcement reported that a 69-year-old was apprehended at a residence in Hampshire's Andover, while a man in his fifties was arrested in Slough in connection with the huge heap of garbage tipped near the area of Kidlington.

These detentions follow a prior investigation which revealed the presence of more than 500 illegal tips across the country of England, including at minimum 11 so-called "super sites" bigger than 20,000 tonnes.

A representative for the environmental authorities stated that the arrests were for ecological and money laundering offences and were a "vital step" in continuing probes. The two individuals have been released on pre-trial release.

Magnitude of the Situation

The tipping ground in the Kidlington area, located between the Cherwell River and the A34, is thought to contain about 21,000 tonnes of rubbish in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) high.

This heap of waste is consists of what looks to be treated household waste, chopped up plastic materials, polystyrene, automobile tires and various everyday items.

It represents just a single of 517 unlawful sites across the country, at minimum 11 of which contain over 20,000 tons of garbage. These encompass a 280,000-tonne location in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne dump in the county of Kent.

The total figure of such major dumps is expected to be higher, as the regulatory body has earlier acknowledged it does not maintain data on weight for all unlawful tip.

Most these sites are in rural areas, typically hidden, and on land that is intended to be farm property.

Organised Enterprise

Authorities say many are run by organized crime groups, who are generating money by asking for significantly less than lawful companies to accept and bury waste.

Firms have to incur gate fees to use licensed landfill sites, depending on the amount and nature of refuse they are trying to discard, and a waste tax is also levied at just over £126 per metric ton.

Local Anger

Preparation operations to clean up the affected dump commenced recently amid fears over the threat of fire and the consequences that would have on the adjacent highway.

A contracted waste removal firm has been awarded the task to handle the area over the following 12 months at a cost of £9.6m.

An enforcement officer for the government environmental crime unit said that the body would be aiming to recover the remediation funds under confiscation laws from any party prosecuted at the end of its ongoing investigation.

She added that the recent detentions would help "push the inquiry forward" and permit authorities to "pursue more avenues to ascertain precisely what happened and who was implicated".

"This unlawful dump at the site was an shocking and calculated assault on our ecology and the authorities understand the local frustration at this horrific act," she remarked.

A cabinet representative supported the arrests, stating: "This unlawful tipping of rubbish at Kidlington is disgraceful and has led to significant detriment to the natural world and upset to the local residents.

"The authorities is dedicated to stamping out this kind of illegal activity in the UK, by augmenting funds to tackle waste crime, hiring more staff and introducing tougher measures and penalties for those who break the law."

The detentions were executed on Thursday by officers from a dedicated serious crime team and follow an previous apprehension of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area in the autumn. He was released subject to further investigations.