Two individuals have been arrested as part of an probe into the dumping of many thousands of tonnes of refuse in a rural field in Oxfordshire.
Authorities stated that a man in his late sixties was apprehended at a property in the town of Andover, while a 54-year-old was arrested in Slough in connection with the enormous heap of garbage deposited near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.
These arrests follow a previous report which revealed the existence of in excess of 500 unauthorized tips throughout the country of England, featuring at a minimum of 11 so-called "major sites" greater than 20,000 metric tons.
A official for the regulatory agency stated that the apprehensions were for ecological and financial violations and represented a "vital step" in continuing probes. The two individuals have been released on pre-trial release.
The illegal site in the Kidlington area, positioned between the River Cherwell and the A34 road, is estimated to contain around 21,000 tons of rubbish in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) in height.
This pile of rubbish is composed of what seems to be processed residential refuse, shredded plastic items, Styrofoam, tires and other everyday items.
It constitutes just a single of 517 unauthorized tips across the country, at minimum 11 of which hold in excess of 20,000 tonnes of rubbish. These encompass a 280,000-tonne site in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne tip in the county of Kent.
The actual figure of such major dumps is likely to be larger, as the regulatory agency has earlier acknowledged it does not maintain data on volume for all illegal dump.
The majority sites are in agricultural locations, often out of sight, and on land that should be arable property.
Authorities report numerous are operated by organised crime gangs, who are making profit by charging significantly less than legitimate firms to accept and dispose of rubbish.
Firms have to incur disposal fees to use licensed landfill sites, contingent on the amount and nature of waste they are trying to get rid of, and a waste tax is also applied at just over £126 per tonne.
Initial work to clear the Kidlington area site commenced earlier this month amid fears over the potential of blaze and the consequences that would have on the adjacent highway.
A commercial clean-up company has been given the task to handle the site over the following 12 months at a expense of £9.6m.
An investigations officer for the national environment team stated that the body would be looking to claim back the clearance funds under asset recovery legislation from any party successfully convicted at the end of its active case.
She noted that this week's detentions would help "push the probe forward" and enable officials to "follow more avenues to determine in detail what transpired and who was a party to it".
"This unauthorized dump at the site was an appalling and calculated affront on our ecology and the authorities share the public's frustration at this terrible offence," she remarked.
A senior representative welcomed the arrests, commenting: "This unlawful deposit of garbage at the site is appalling and has caused substantial damage to the environment and distress to the local community.
"Our authorities is committed to stamping out this category of crime across the nation, by increasing resources to address environmental crime, hiring more officers and introducing tougher measures and sanctions for those who violate the law."
The apprehensions were made on a recent Thursday by officers from a specialist organised crime unit and come after an prior arrest of a man in his thirties from the Guildford area in last November. He was let go subject to additional inquiries.
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