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A pair of individuals have been detained as an element of an inquiry into the illegal deposit of several thousand of metric tons of waste in a open field in Oxfordshire.

Law enforcement reported that a 69-year-old was apprehended at a dwelling in Andover, Hampshire, while a 54-year-old was taken into custody in Slough in relation with the massive heap of garbage dumped near Kidlington.

These apprehensions occur a week after a recent revelation which exposed the existence of in excess of 500 illegal tips throughout the country of England, encompassing at minimum 11 so-called "super sites" greater than 20,000 tons.

A spokeswoman for the environment body said that the detentions were for environmental and money laundering crimes and represented a "crucial step" in ongoing inquiries. Both men have been released on conditional release.

Scale of the Situation

The tipping ground in Kidlington, situated between the River Cherwell and the A34 road, is estimated to contain approximately 21,000 metric tons of waste in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) in height.

This mound of garbage is made up of what appears to be treated domestic waste, chopped up plastics, Styrofoam, tyres and other household objects.

It represents just one of 517 unlawful sites across England, at minimum 11 of which contain in excess of 20,000 metric tons of rubbish. These feature a 280,000-tonne site in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne tip in Kent.

The total figure of such major dumps is probably to be higher, as the environmental body has earlier stated it does not hold records on volume for all unauthorized tip.

The majority sites are in countryside locations, often hidden, and on land that is intended to be farm land.

Criminal Operations

Police say numerous are operated by organized crime groups, who are earning profit by demanding much less than lawful companies to accept and dispose of garbage.

Companies have to incur site fees to use licensed disposal sites, based on the quantity and type of material they are trying to dispose of, and a disposal levy is also charged at just over £126 per ton.

Local Anger

Initial operations to clear the Kidlington location started in recent weeks following fears over the threat of combustion and the impact that would have on the adjacent A-road.

A contracted waste removal company has been awarded the task to deal with the location over the coming 12 months at a expense of £9.6m.

An enforcement officer for the national regulatory division stated that the body would be aiming to recover the remediation costs under confiscation legislation from any party convicted at the end of its active inquiry.

She further stated that the recent apprehensions would help "push the inquiry forward" and allow officials to "investigate more avenues to determine precisely what occurred and who was involved".

"This unlawful dump at this location was an atrocious and intentional affront on our ecology and officials understand the public's outrage at this egregious act," she said.

A government representative supported the detentions, adding: "This illegal deposit of garbage at Kidlington is disgraceful and has led to substantial damage to the natural world and anguish to the local community.

"The government is pledged to eliminating this type of crime in the UK, by augmenting resources to tackle environmental crime, hiring more personnel and introducing more severe measures and sanctions for those who violate the regulations."

The apprehensions were made on Thursday by agents from a dedicated serious crime unit and are in addition to an prior detention of a 39-year-old from the Guildford region in last November. He was released awaiting additional investigations.