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Two men have been taken into custody as a component of an probe into the illegal deposit of many thousands of tonnes of waste in a field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Authorities indicated that a man in his late sixties was detained at a property in the town of Andover, while a 54-year-old was arrested in the town of Slough in connection with the huge pile of garbage deposited near the area of Kidlington.

These apprehensions come after a previous report which exposed the existence of over 500 unauthorized sites across the country of England, encompassing at a minimum of 11 so-called "major sites" greater than 20,000 tonnes.

A representative for the regulatory authorities stated that the arrests were for environment-related and money laundering violations and constituted a "vital step" in continuing investigations. The apprehended men have been let go on bail.

Magnitude of the Problem

The illegal site in the Kidlington area, located between the Cherwell River and the A34 road, is estimated to house about 21,000 tonnes of refuse in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) lengthwise and 6m (20ft) tall.

This pile of garbage is made up of what appears to be treated residential rubbish, chopped up plastics, Styrofoam, automobile tires and assorted everyday articles.

It is just one of 517 illegal sites in England, at least 11 of which hold in excess of 20,000 tonnes of garbage. These encompass a 280,000-tonne site in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire county and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The total amount of such major locations is probably to be greater, as the regulatory body has in the past acknowledged it does not possess records on weight for every unlawful dump.

The majority these sites are in rural locations, frequently hidden, and on land that is zoned as farm property.

Criminal Activity

Authorities state numerous are run by organized crime groups, who are generating cash by charging much less than legitimate operators to accept and landfill garbage.

Businesses have to be liable for site fees to use legitimate disposal sites, depending on the quantity and nature of refuse they are trying to discard, and landfill tax is also applied at just over £126 per metric ton.

Public Frustration

Preparatory work to clean up the Kidlington area dump began in recent weeks amid fears over the threat of fire and the consequences that would have on the adjacent highway.

A private clean-up firm has been granted the job to remediate the area over the following 12 months at a price of £9.6m.

An investigations manager for the country's regulatory division stated that the agency would be looking to claim back the remediation funds under confiscation acts from anyone successfully found guilty at the conclusion of its active case.

She noted that the recent arrests would help "drive the inquiry forward" and enable authorities to "pursue more lines of inquiry to determine in detail what transpired and who was a party to it".

"This unauthorized dump at the site was an atrocious and calculated affront on our environment and we share the local anger at this horrific crime," she stated.

A senior minister welcomed the actions, stating: "The unlawful dumping of waste at Kidlington is utterly appalling and has caused significant detriment to the environment and anguish to the surrounding residents.

"The government is committed to eliminating this category of illegal activity throughout the UK, by boosting resources to tackle waste crime, hiring more officers and introducing stricter checks and sanctions for those who break the regulations."

The apprehensions were executed on Thursday by agents from a regional organised crime unit and come after an previous detention of a man in his thirties from the Surrey area in the autumn. He was let go pending additional investigations.