Apprehensions Carried Out in Link to Supersized Unlawful Landfill

Two individuals have been taken into custody as an element of an inquiry into the illegal deposit of thousands of metric tons of rubbish in a field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Law enforcement indicated that a 69-year-old was apprehended at a property in Andover, Hampshire, while a 54-year-old was detained in Slough, Berkshire in relation with the enormous pile of waste deposited near Kidlington.

These arrests come after a previous report which exposed the presence of more than 500 unauthorized sites in England, encompassing at a minimum of 11 so-called "major sites" greater than 20,000 tonnes.

A spokeswoman for the regulatory body commented that the apprehensions were for environment-related and financial offences and represented a "vital step" in ongoing investigations. The apprehended men have been set free on conditional release.

Scale of the Problem

The illegal site in near Kidlington, located between the river Cherwell and the A34 road, is estimated to hold approximately 21,000 tonnes of refuse in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) in height.

This mound of rubbish is made up of what looks to be treated household waste, fragmented plastic items, Styrofoam, automobile tires and other household articles.

It represents just one example of 517 unauthorized sites in England, at a minimum of 11 of which are estimated to hold over 20,000 metric tons of rubbish. They feature a 280,000-tonne location in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne dump in Kent.

The overall figure of such bigger sites is likely to be larger, as the environment agency has previously indicated it does not possess information on tonnage for all unauthorized dump.

A large proportion of these sites are in countryside settings, frequently concealed, and on land that should be farm ground.

Organised Operations

Law enforcement state numerous are operated by organised crime gangs, who are earning profit by charging much less than lawful firms to accept and landfill waste.

Businesses have to incur disposal fees to use licensed disposal sites, based on the volume and nature of material they are trying to dispose of, and a disposal levy is also levied at just over £126 per metric ton.

Community Outrage

Initial operations to clean up the affected site commenced recently following worries over the threat of combustion and the effect that would have on the adjacent major road.

A commercial waste removal company has been given the contract to remediate the area over the coming 12 months period at a expense of £9.6m.

An investigations official for the national regulatory unit said that the agency would be looking to recoup the remediation expenses under proceeds of crime laws from any individual ultimately found guilty at the end of its active case.

She added that these detentions would help "drive the investigation forward" and allow officials to "follow more lines of inquiry to determine in detail what transpired and who was involved".

"The illegal tip at the site was an appalling and intentional affront on our environment and we empathize with the community's frustration at this egregious crime," she stated.

A government representative welcomed the detentions, commenting: "The illegal dumping of waste at this location is appalling and has led to substantial detriment to the ecology and upset to the surrounding residents.

"Our authorities is committed to eliminating this category of crime in the nation, by augmenting resources to combat illegal dumping, employing more officers and introducing tougher controls and sanctions for those who break the law."

The arrests were carried out on a recent Thursday by personnel from a specialist serious crime team and are in addition to an previous detention of a man in his thirties from the Surrey region in the autumn. He was set free subject to additional investigations.