Arrests Executed in Relation to Supersized Illegal Rubbish Dump

Two individuals have been arrested as an element of an probe into the illegal deposit of many thousands of tonnes of waste in a field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Officials reported that a man in his late sixties was detained at a property in Andover, Hampshire, while a 54-year-old was arrested in the town of Slough in relation with the massive pile of waste dumped near Kidlington.

These detentions occur a week after a previous revelation which exposed the operation of more than 500 illegal dumps in England, including at a minimum of 11 so-called "major sites" greater than 20,000 tonnes.

A spokeswoman for the regulatory authorities said that the apprehensions were for ecological and proceeds of crime violations and represented a "key step" in ongoing probes. The apprehended men have been let go on conditional release.

Magnitude of the Issue

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

This pile of waste is made up of what appears to be sorted household waste, chopped up plastic materials, Styrofoam, automobile tires and assorted domestic objects.

It is just one example of 517 illegal tips throughout the country, at a minimum of 11 of which are estimated to hold over 20,000 tons of garbage. They include a 280,000-tonne location in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne areas in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne dump in the county of Kent.

The overall amount of such bigger dumps is likely to be greater, as the environment authority has previously acknowledged it does not possess data on tonnage for each illegal dump.

Most these sites are in countryside locations, frequently concealed, and on land that is intended to be farm land.

Organised Activity

Law enforcement report a significant number are operated by organised crime gangs, who are generating profit by charging significantly less than legitimate companies to take and landfill garbage.

Companies have to incur disposal fees to use legitimate disposal sites, depending on the quantity and category of material they are trying to get rid of, and a disposal levy is also applied at just over £126 per ton.

Public Anger

Preparation work to clear the Kidlington area location started earlier this month amid concerns over the threat of combustion and the impact that would have on the close-by highway.

A contracted waste clearance firm has been granted the job to deal with the area over the following 12 months period at a price of £9.6m.

An compliance manager for the country's environment team said that the authority would be aiming to recover the clean-up funds under proceeds of crime laws from any individual convicted at the termination of its current case.

She noted that the recent arrests would help "move the probe forward" and permit the agency to "follow more leads to determine exactly what happened and who was implicated".

"This unauthorized tip at this location was an appalling and intentional attack on our environment and we understand the community's anger at this horrific offence," she said.

A government official welcomed the arrests, commenting: "This illegal tipping of garbage at this location is utterly appalling and has resulted in substantial damage to the natural world and upset to the local community.

"Our administration is pledged to eradicating this type of illegal activity in the nation, by augmenting resources to address waste crime, recruiting more staff and enacting tougher measures and sanctions for those who break the law."

The detentions were carried out on Thursday by officers from a dedicated serious crime unit and follow an previous arrest of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area region in November. He was released subject to more inquiries.