Detentions Made in Link to Enormous Unauthorized Landfill

A pair of individuals have been detained as an element of an investigation into the dumping of several thousand of tonnes of rubbish in a rural field in Oxfordshire, England.

Officials stated that a 69-year-old was arrested at a dwelling in Andover, Hampshire, while a 54-year-old was detained in the town of Slough in relation with the massive heap of garbage dumped near the area of Kidlington.

These arrests occur a week after a previous investigation which revealed the existence of in excess of 500 unlawful dumps throughout England, including at least 11 so-called "large-scale sites" bigger than 20,000 metric tons.

A official for the environmental body said that the apprehensions were for environmental and proceeds of crime offences and represented a "vital step" in ongoing inquiries. The two individuals have been let go on pre-trial release.

Magnitude of the Situation

The tipping ground in near Kidlington, located between the river Cherwell and the A34 highway, is believed to contain approximately 21,000 tons of waste in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) tall.

This pile of rubbish is made up of what looks to be processed residential waste, chopped up plastic materials, expanded polystyrene, tyres and various household articles.

It is just one example of 517 unlawful tips across England, at minimum 11 of which hold over 20,000 metric tons of rubbish. These include a 280,000-tonne location in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The total number of such bigger locations is likely to be larger, as the environment authority has in the past acknowledged it does not possess records on volume for all illegal tip.

Most sites are in agricultural settings, typically concealed, and on land that should be arable land.

Organized Operations

Police say a significant number are operated by organized crime groups, who are making money by demanding far less than lawful operators to receive and bury waste.

Businesses have to incur gate fees to use legitimate landfill sites, contingent on the amount and type of waste they are trying to discard, and landfill tax is also applied at just over £126 per ton.

Community Frustration

Initial work to clear the Kidlington location started earlier this month following fears over the potential of blaze and the impact that would have on the close-by major road.

A contracted waste removal contractor has been given the job to handle the location over the next 12 months at a price of £9.6m.

An compliance officer for the country's environment division said that the body would be looking to claim back the clean-up funds under asset recovery acts from any individual successfully convicted at the end of its active case.

She noted that the recent arrests would help "push the probe forward" and permit authorities to "investigate more lines of inquiry to understand precisely what happened and who was implicated".

"This unlawful site at Kidlington was an atrocious and intentional attack on our environment and officials understand the public's frustration at this horrific crime," she said.

A senior representative praised the actions, adding: "The illegal dumping of rubbish at Kidlington is utterly appalling and has caused substantial damage to the environment and anguish to the surrounding population.

"Our authorities is pledged to eradicating this category of crime in the country, by augmenting resources to tackle waste crime, employing more officers and enacting more severe measures and penalties for those who break the regulations."

The arrests were carried out on the specified day by officers from a dedicated organised crime unit and follow an earlier detention of a man in his thirties from the Guildford area in November. He was set free awaiting further inquiries.