Arrests Carried Out in Link to Supersized Unauthorized Landfill

A pair of individuals have been detained as an element of an investigation into the dumping of many thousands of tonnes of refuse in a rural field in Oxfordshire, England.

Law enforcement stated that a 69-year-old was apprehended at a property in Andover, Hampshire, while a man in his fifties was taken into custody in the town of Slough in relation with the massive heap of rubbish deposited near Kidlington.

These arrests occur a week after a prior revelation which exposed the operation of in excess of 500 unlawful sites in England, featuring at minimum 11 so-called "large-scale sites" greater than 20,000 tonnes.

A representative for the regulatory authorities said that the arrests were for environmental and financial violations and constituted a "crucial step" in active investigations. Both men have been let go on conditional release.

Size of the Situation

The tipping ground in Kidlington, located between the Cherwell River and the A34 road, is believed to house around 21,000 metric tons of waste in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) high.

This mound of waste is made up of what appears to be processed residential rubbish, fragmented plastic items, polystyrene, tyres and other domestic items.

It represents just one of 517 illegal sites in the country, at least 11 of which are estimated to hold over 20,000 tons of garbage. Such sites include a 280,000-tonne site in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne sites in Lancashire and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne dump in the county of Kent.

The actual amount of such larger dumps is likely to be higher, as the environment authority has in the past acknowledged it does not possess data on tonnage for all unlawful tip.

A large proportion of these sites are in rural locations, often out of sight, and on land that should be farm land.

Organized Operations

Police say numerous are managed by organized crime groups, who are earning money by asking for much less than lawful companies to receive and landfill waste.

Companies have to pay site fees to use licensed disposal sites, depending on the amount and category of waste they are trying to discard, and landfill tax is also levied at just over £126 per metric ton.

Community Outrage

Preparatory work to remove the affected dump began in recent weeks due to worries over the potential of fire and the impact that would have on the close-by A-road.

A commercial clean-up company has been given the contract to deal with the site over the following 12 months at a price of £9.6m.

An enforcement manager for the government environment unit said that the authority would be aiming to recoup the clearance funds under asset recovery laws from any individual prosecuted at the termination of its ongoing case.

She further stated that these apprehensions would help "move the probe forward" and enable the agency to "follow more leads to ascertain in detail what happened and who was involved".

"The unauthorized site at Kidlington was an appalling and calculated assault on our environment and the authorities empathize with the public's outrage at this egregious crime," she said.

A government representative welcomed the detentions, stating: "This unlawful dumping of rubbish at the site is disgraceful and has led to significant detriment to the ecology and upset to the nearby residents.

"Our administration is dedicated to stamping out this kind of illegal activity across the nation, by boosting funds to address illegal dumping, hiring more officers and introducing stricter checks and penalties for those who flout the rules."

The arrests were carried out on the specified day by personnel from a specialist organised crime squad and follow an earlier apprehension of a 39-year-old from the Surrey region in the autumn. He was set free awaiting additional enquiries.