🔗 Share this article

Two men have been detained as part of an probe into the illegal deposit of thousands of tons of rubbish in a open field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Law enforcement stated that a 69-year-old was apprehended at a residence in Hampshire's Andover, while a 54-year-old was arrested in Slough in association with the massive heap of rubbish deposited near the area of Kidlington.

These detentions come after a previous revelation which uncovered the presence of over 500 unlawful sites throughout England, including at minimum 11 so-called "large-scale sites" larger than 20,000 metric tons.

A official for the environment authorities said that the arrests were for ecological and proceeds of crime violations and represented a "crucial step" in continuing probes. Both men have been released on bail.

Scale of the Problem

The tipping ground in the Kidlington area, situated between the Cherwell River and the A34 highway, is estimated to house approximately 21,000 tonnes of refuse in a pile which is up to 150m (490ft) lengthwise and 6m (20ft) tall.

This mound of waste is composed of what looks to be processed domestic waste, chopped up plastic items, Styrofoam, tires and various domestic items.

It represents just a single of 517 unauthorized tips in England, at least 11 of which hold in excess of 20,000 tons of garbage. Such sites feature a 280,000-tonne location in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire county and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne site in the county of Kent.

The total amount of such major dumps is expected to be higher, as the environmental authority has in the past stated it does not hold records on tonnage for each illegal site.

A large proportion of such locations are in rural settings, often out of sight, and on land that is intended to be agricultural land.

Criminal Operations

Authorities say numerous are run by organised crime gangs, who are earning money by charging much less than licensed firms to take and bury waste.

Firms have to pay site fees to use legitimate landfill sites, contingent on the volume and category of material they are trying to get rid of, and a waste tax is also applied at just over £126 per tonne.

Local Frustration

Initial operations to remove the affected dump started in recent weeks amid fears over the risk of fire and the impact that would have on the nearby A-road.

A commercial clean-up firm has been awarded the contract to handle the site over the following 12 months at a cost of £9.6m.

An enforcement officer for the country's environment team said that the body would be aiming to recover the remediation expenses under proceeds of crime laws from any individual successfully found guilty at the termination of its active case.

She added that these arrests would help "push the investigation forward" and allow the agency to "investigate more avenues to understand in detail what occurred and who was implicated".

"The unlawful site at Kidlington was an appalling and intentional attack on our environment and the authorities share the public's outrage at this terrible offence," she said.

A senior representative welcomed the detentions, adding: "The illegal dumping of waste at this location is appalling and has led to significant damage to the environment and upset to the surrounding residents.

"Our authorities is committed to eradicating this type of crime throughout the nation, by boosting resources to tackle illegal dumping, employing more officers and implementing tougher checks and penalties for those who break the rules."

The apprehensions were made on a recent Thursday by personnel from a dedicated organised crime team and come after an earlier apprehension of a 39-year-old from the Surrey region in last November. He was set free pending more investigations.