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Two men have been taken into custody as part of an inquiry into the dumping of several thousand of tonnes of refuse in a field in Oxfordshire, England.

Law enforcement indicated that a 69-year-old was apprehended at a residence in Andover, Hampshire, while a 54-year-old was taken into custody in Slough in relation with the enormous mound of rubbish deposited near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These detentions come after a recent investigation which exposed the presence of more than 500 unlawful tips across England, including at minimum 11 so-called "large-scale sites" greater than 20,000 tons.

A official for the regulatory authorities stated that the apprehensions were for environment-related and money laundering violations and were a "key step" in active investigations. Both men have been released on bail.

Scale of the Situation

The dump in the Kidlington area, positioned between the Cherwell River and the A34 road, is estimated to contain around 21,000 tons of waste in a pile which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) tall.

This mound of waste is consists of what looks to be processed household waste, shredded plastic materials, polystyrene, tires and various household articles.

It constitutes just a single of 517 unlawful tips in England, at a minimum of 11 of which contain more than 20,000 tons of rubbish. They feature a 280,000-tonne site in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne areas in Lancashire county and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The actual number of such major locations is probably to be larger, as the environment agency has in the past indicated it does not hold information on tonnage for each unauthorized site.

Most these sites are in countryside locations, frequently out of sight, and on land that is zoned as farm ground.

Criminal Activity

Authorities report a significant number are managed by organized crime groups, who are generating profit by charging far less than legitimate operators to receive and bury waste.

Businesses have to pay site fees to use lawful waste facilities, based on the amount and category of material they are trying to discard, and a disposal levy is also charged at just over £126 per tonne.

Public Anger

Preparation operations to clear the Kidlington dump began recently following fears over the potential of blaze and the impact that would have on the nearby highway.

A private clean-up firm has been given the task to deal with the area over the next 12 months at a cost of £9.6m.

An enforcement official for the national regulatory unit commented that the agency would be looking to recoup the clearance costs under confiscation legislation from any party ultimately convicted at the end of its current inquiry.

She further stated that this week's detentions would help "move the inquiry forward" and allow the agency to "pursue more lines of inquiry to determine precisely what occurred and who was implicated".

"The unauthorized site at Kidlington was an atrocious and intentional affront on our ecology and officials understand the community's outrage at this horrific offence," she stated.

A cabinet official welcomed the arrests, adding: "This unlawful tipping of garbage at Kidlington is utterly appalling and has resulted in considerable detriment to the environment and anguish to the surrounding population.

"The authorities is committed to eradicating this kind of crime throughout the UK, by augmenting funds to tackle environmental crime, recruiting more staff and implementing more severe controls and penalties for those who violate the rules."

The apprehensions were made on a recent Thursday by officers from a dedicated organised crime unit and are in addition to an earlier detention of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area region in last November. He was set free awaiting more inquiries.