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Two men have been taken into custody as part of an probe into the dumping of thousands of tonnes of rubbish in a rural field in Oxfordshire, England.

Authorities stated that a man in his late sixties was detained at a residence in Hampshire's Andover, while a man in his fifties was taken into custody in Slough, Berkshire in connection with the massive pile of garbage deposited near Kidlington.

These apprehensions come after a recent revelation which uncovered the existence of over 500 illegal tips across England, including at least 11 so-called "large-scale sites" larger than 20,000 tons.

A spokeswoman for the environment body stated that the arrests were for environment-related and money laundering crimes and represented a "crucial step" in active inquiries. Both men have been released on pre-trial release.

Magnitude of the Situation

The illegal site in near Kidlington, situated between the river Cherwell and the A34 highway, is thought to contain around 21,000 tons of rubbish in a pile which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) tall.

This pile of rubbish is consists of what seems to be treated household waste, fragmented plastic items, expanded polystyrene, tyres and assorted everyday items.

It represents just one example of 517 illegal tips in England, at a minimum of 11 of which hold in excess of 20,000 tons of rubbish. Such sites encompass a 280,000-tonne site in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire county and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne site in Kent.

The overall number of such larger sites is probably to be larger, as the regulatory agency has previously stated it does not hold data on tonnage for all unlawful dump.

The majority such locations are in rural locations, typically out of sight, and on land that is zoned as agricultural land.

Organised Operations

Police state numerous are managed by criminal organizations, who are making profit by charging far less than licensed firms to accept and bury rubbish.

Businesses have to incur site fees to use legitimate landfill sites, based on the amount and category of waste they are trying to dispose of, and landfill tax is also levied at just over £126 per metric ton.

Community Outrage

Preparation work to clean up the Kidlington area dump started recently amid fears over the risk of fire and the impact that would have on the close-by highway.

A contracted waste removal company has been granted the task to handle the site over the coming 12 months at a price of £9.6m.

An investigations manager for the country's environmental crime team stated that the authority would be aiming to recoup the clearance funds under confiscation laws from anyone ultimately found guilty at the conclusion of its active investigation.

She noted that the recent apprehensions would help "push the inquiry forward" and enable authorities to "pursue more avenues to determine exactly what occurred and who was implicated".

"This unlawful dump at the site was an atrocious and intentional assault on our ecology and the authorities share the public's anger at this horrific offence," she said.

A cabinet minister welcomed the arrests, commenting: "This illegal deposit of rubbish at this location is disgraceful and has led to substantial damage to the natural world and upset to the local residents.

"The government is pledged to eliminating this type of crime across the country, by boosting financing to address waste crime, recruiting more personnel and introducing more severe checks and fines for those who flout the law."

The arrests were made on the specified day by agents from a dedicated serious crime unit and are in addition to an prior apprehension of a 39-year-old from the Guildford region in November. He was let go subject to additional investigations.