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Two men have been taken into custody as part of an probe into the tipping of several thousand of tons of refuse in a field in Oxfordshire, England.

Officials reported that a 69-year-old was detained at a property in Andover, Hampshire, while a man in his fifties was arrested in Slough in relation with the massive pile of rubbish deposited near the area of Kidlington.

These apprehensions follow a recent investigation which exposed the existence of over 500 unlawful tips throughout England, including at least 11 so-called "large-scale sites" larger than 20,000 tonnes.

A official for the environment agency commented that the detentions were for environment-related and proceeds of crime crimes and represented a "key step" in active investigations. Both men have been let go on conditional release.

Magnitude of the Situation

The dump in Kidlington, situated between the River Cherwell and the A34 road, is thought to house around 21,000 metric tons of refuse in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) in height.

This mound of garbage is consists of what seems to be treated household refuse, shredded plastic items, expanded polystyrene, tyres and various household objects.

It is just one example of 517 unauthorized tips across England, at a minimum of 11 of which hold in excess of 20,000 tonnes of garbage. These include a 280,000-tonne location in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne site in the county of Kent.

The total figure of such bigger dumps is likely to be greater, as the regulatory body has earlier stated it does not hold data on tonnage for all illegal dump.

The majority these sites are in countryside locations, often hidden, and on land that should be arable property.

Organized Activity

Police state a significant number are managed by organized crime groups, who are earning cash by charging far less than licensed companies to accept and landfill garbage.

Companies have to pay disposal fees to use lawful disposal sites, contingent on the volume and category of material they are trying to discard, and a disposal levy is also charged at just over £126 per ton.

Community Frustration

Preparatory efforts to clear the Kidlington location started in recent weeks following concerns over the potential of fire and the impact that would have on the adjacent A-road.

A commercial waste clearance company has been given the contract to handle the location over the coming 12 months period at a expense of £9.6m.

An compliance officer for the country's environmental crime division said that the agency would be aiming to recover the clean-up expenses under confiscation laws from any individual successfully prosecuted at the conclusion of its active case.

She further stated that this week's detentions would help "move the inquiry forward" and allow authorities to "pursue more leads to understand exactly what transpired and who was implicated".

"This unlawful site at this location was an appalling and calculated assault on our ecology and we share the local anger at this horrific act," she remarked.

A cabinet representative welcomed the arrests, adding: "This unlawful dumping of waste at this location is disgraceful and has caused significant harm to the ecology and upset to the local residents.

"Our authorities is pledged to stamping out this kind of crime throughout the country, by augmenting financing to tackle waste crime, recruiting more officers and implementing tougher controls and sanctions for those who break the rules."

The apprehensions were executed on Thursday by personnel from a specialist crime unit and come after an previous arrest of a 39-year-old from the Surrey region in November. He was set free pending further inquiries.