🔗 Share this article

Two individuals have been taken into custody as an element of an inquiry into the tipping of several thousand of metric tons of waste in a field in Oxfordshire, England.

Authorities stated that a man in his late sixties was arrested at a property in Andover, Hampshire, while a man in his fifties was taken into custody in Slough in relation with the massive pile of rubbish dumped near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These arrests come after a recent investigation which revealed the existence of in excess of 500 unauthorized sites throughout England, including at minimum 11 so-called "large-scale sites" greater than 20,000 tons.

A spokeswoman for the environmental authorities commented that the apprehensions were for environment-related and proceeds of crime violations and were a "vital step" in continuing inquiries. The apprehended men have been let go on pre-trial release.

Scale of the Issue

The tipping ground in the Kidlington area, situated between the river Cherwell and the A34, is thought to hold approximately 21,000 metric tons of rubbish in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) lengthwise and 6m (20ft) tall.

This heap of rubbish is consists of what appears to be treated domestic waste, fragmented plastics, Styrofoam, tires and assorted household objects.

It is just a single of 517 unauthorized dumps across the country, at least 11 of which hold over 20,000 metric tons of rubbish. Such sites feature a 280,000-tonne location in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne tip in Kent.

The actual amount of such larger locations is expected to be greater, as the environment body has earlier indicated it does not maintain records on weight for all illegal dump.

Most sites are in rural areas, typically hidden, and on land that is intended to be agricultural property.

Criminal Operations

Police state many are managed by organized crime groups, who are earning money by demanding far less than lawful operators to take and dispose of garbage.

Businesses have to be liable for disposal fees to use lawful waste facilities, depending on the volume and category of waste they are trying to discard, and a waste tax is also charged at just over £126 per ton.

Local Outrage

Preparatory work to remove the affected location began recently due to worries over the risk of blaze and the impact that would have on the adjacent major road.

A commercial waste clearance contractor has been awarded the task to deal with the site over the following 12 months at a expense of £9.6m.

An compliance official for the country's environmental crime unit commented that the body would be aiming to recoup the remediation expenses under confiscation laws from anyone ultimately found guilty at the conclusion of its active inquiry.

She added that the recent arrests would help "move the investigation forward" and enable officials to "investigate more avenues to determine exactly what occurred and who was involved".

"The illegal site at the site was an appalling and deliberate assault on our ecology and officials empathize with the local anger at this horrific crime," she said.

A senior representative praised the arrests, stating: "The unauthorized deposit of garbage at the site is disgraceful and has resulted in considerable damage to the environment and upset to the nearby community.

"The authorities is pledged to stamping out this type of illegal activity across the UK, by increasing resources to address waste crime, hiring more staff and implementing more severe measures and sanctions for those who flout the law."

The detentions were executed on a recent Thursday by officers from a regional organised crime team and follow an earlier apprehension of a man in his thirties from the Surrey region in last November. He was let go subject to additional investigations.