Two individuals have been arrested as part of an probe into the dumping of several thousand of tons of waste in a open field in the county of Oxfordshire.
Authorities indicated that a 69-year-old was arrested at a residence in the town of Andover, while a 54-year-old was arrested in Slough, Berkshire in association with the enormous pile of rubbish dumped near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.
These apprehensions come after a prior investigation which exposed the presence of more than 500 illegal dumps across England, including at a minimum of 11 so-called "major sites" larger than 20,000 tonnes.
A representative for the environment authorities commented that the apprehensions were for environment-related and money laundering offences and were a "vital step" in ongoing investigations. Both men have been released on pre-trial release.
The illegal site in the Kidlington area, positioned between the River Cherwell and the A34, is thought to contain approximately 21,000 tons of refuse in a mound which is up to 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) in height.
This mound of garbage is consists of what appears to be sorted household rubbish, fragmented plastic items, Styrofoam, tires and various domestic objects.
It constitutes just one of 517 unauthorized dumps in the country, at least 11 of which contain over 20,000 tonnes of garbage. They feature a 280,000-tonne area in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire county and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne dump in the county of Kent.
The total amount of such bigger dumps is likely to be higher, as the environmental body has previously indicated it does not possess data on volume for every unauthorized site.
The majority such locations are in countryside areas, often hidden, and on land that should be agricultural ground.
Law enforcement state many are run by criminal organizations, who are earning money by charging much less than licensed companies to accept and bury garbage.
Firms have to pay disposal fees to use licensed waste facilities, based on the amount and category of material they are trying to discard, and a disposal levy is also charged at just over £126 per tonne.
Preparation work to remove the affected site started earlier this month amid worries over the potential of blaze and the consequences that would have on the close-by A-road.
A contracted waste clearance company has been granted the task to remediate the site over the coming 12 months period at a expense of £9.6m.
An compliance manager for the country's environmental crime team commented that the authority would be looking to claim back the remediation costs under confiscation legislation from any party successfully found guilty at the termination of its current case.
She noted that this week's detentions would help "drive the inquiry forward" and permit officials to "follow more leads to understand exactly what occurred and who was a party to it".
"The illegal tip at Kidlington was an atrocious and calculated affront on our natural surroundings and the authorities understand the local anger at this terrible act," she stated.
A government representative praised the actions, stating: "The unauthorized deposit of waste at the site is utterly appalling and has led to substantial harm to the environment and upset to the surrounding population.
"The administration is pledged to stamping out this type of crime in the nation, by augmenting financing to address waste crime, hiring more personnel and enacting more severe checks and sanctions for those who violate the law."
The detentions were made on the specified day by officers from a dedicated organised crime team and follow an earlier arrest of a man in his thirties from the Guildford area area in the autumn. He was let go pending further inquiries.
