🔗 Share this article

A pair of individuals have been taken into custody as a component of an probe into the illegal deposit of several thousand of metric tons of refuse in a open field in the county of Oxfordshire.

Authorities indicated that a man in his late sixties was arrested at a residence in Andover, Hampshire, while a 54-year-old was detained in Slough, Berkshire in connection with the huge pile of rubbish dumped near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These arrests come after a previous revelation which exposed the operation of over 500 unauthorized tips in the country of England, including at a minimum of 11 so-called "large-scale sites" greater than 20,000 tons.

A representative for the environment agency commented that the arrests were for ecological and proceeds of crime offences and constituted a "key step" in ongoing investigations. Both men have been set free on pre-trial release.

Magnitude of the Issue

The dump in near Kidlington, located between the river Cherwell and the A34 highway, is thought to contain about 21,000 metric tons of rubbish in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) tall.

This mound of waste is made up of what looks to be sorted residential rubbish, chopped up plastics, polystyrene, automobile tires and other household items.

It represents just one example of 517 unauthorized tips in England, at a minimum of 11 of which contain over 20,000 metric tons of rubbish. These feature a 280,000-tonne location in the county of Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire county and Cornwall county and a 36,000-tonne site in the county of Kent.

The total number of such larger locations is likely to be larger, as the regulatory agency has previously acknowledged it does not hold records on tonnage for every illegal dump.

The majority these sites are in agricultural areas, often out of sight, and on land that should be agricultural property.

Criminal Enterprise

Police say a significant number are operated by organised crime gangs, who are making profit by asking for significantly less than lawful companies to receive and bury garbage.

Companies have to pay site fees to use licensed landfill sites, based on the quantity and type of material they are trying to dispose of, and a disposal levy is also applied at just over £126 per metric ton.

Community Outrage

Initial work to clear the Kidlington dump began earlier this month following worries over the risk of combustion and the effect that would have on the close-by major road.

A contracted waste clearance firm has been granted the job to remediate the site over the following 12 months at a price of £9.6m.

An compliance officer for the country's environment team stated that the agency would be seeking to recoup the remediation costs under proceeds of crime laws from anyone successfully prosecuted at the conclusion of its ongoing case.

She noted that the recent detentions would help "push the investigation forward" and permit authorities to "follow more lines of inquiry to ascertain in detail what transpired and who was involved".

"This illegal dump at Kidlington was an shocking and calculated attack on our natural surroundings and the authorities understand the local outrage at this horrific offence," she stated.

A cabinet minister praised the actions, adding: "This illegal dumping of rubbish at Kidlington is disgraceful and has resulted in substantial damage to the environment and upset to the local residents.

"The government is pledged to eliminating this kind of illegal activity throughout the country, by boosting financing to address environmental crime, recruiting more officers and implementing stricter checks and penalties for those who flout the law."

The apprehensions were made on Thursday by agents from a specialist serious crime squad and follow an prior arrest of a 39-year-old from the Guildford area in last November. He was set free subject to further inquiries.