Detentions Made in Link to Enormous Unauthorized Waste Site

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

Law enforcement indicated that a 69-year-old was arrested at a dwelling in the town of Andover, while a 54-year-old was taken into custody in Slough, Berkshire in connection with the huge heap of waste deposited near Kidlington, Oxfordshire.

These detentions follow a prior report which uncovered the existence of more than 500 unauthorized dumps across England, encompassing at a minimum of 11 so-called "major sites" greater than 20,000 tons.

A spokeswoman for the regulatory authorities commented that the arrests were for ecological and money laundering crimes and represented a "crucial step" in continuing inquiries. The apprehended men have been set free on conditional release.

Size of the Problem

The dump in Kidlington, positioned between the river Cherwell and the A34 road, is estimated to house about 21,000 tonnes of rubbish in a heap which is up to 150m (490ft) long and 6m (20ft) high.

This pile of waste is composed of what appears to be processed household waste, chopped up plastic items, expanded polystyrene, tyres and other everyday objects.

It constitutes just a single of 517 unlawful sites in the country, at a minimum of 11 of which hold in excess of 20,000 tons of waste. Such sites feature a 280,000-tonne location in Cheshire, two 50,000-tonne locations in Lancashire and Cornwall and a 36,000-tonne tip in Kent.

The actual figure of such larger sites is expected to be larger, as the environment agency has earlier indicated it does not maintain data on volume for every illegal dump.

A large proportion of these sites are in agricultural areas, often hidden, and on land that is zoned as farm ground.

Organised Operations

Law enforcement state a significant number are run by criminal organizations, who are earning money by demanding significantly less than legitimate firms to take and dispose of waste.

Firms have to pay site fees to use legitimate waste facilities, based on the volume and type of refuse they are trying to dispose of, and a disposal levy is also applied at just over £126 per tonne.

Community Outrage

Initial operations to clean up the Kidlington dump began earlier this month due to concerns over the potential of blaze and the effect that would have on the close-by highway.

A contracted waste clearance firm has been given the job to deal with the location over the following 12 months at a cost of £9.6m.

An enforcement official for the government environmental crime division stated that the authority would be seeking to claim back the remediation costs under asset recovery laws from anyone ultimately convicted at the end of its current investigation.

She added that these apprehensions would help "push the inquiry forward" and permit the agency to "pursue more leads to ascertain in detail what occurred and who was involved".

"This unauthorized tip at Kidlington was an appalling and calculated attack on our ecology and we share the public's frustration at this terrible crime," she remarked.

A senior minister praised the actions, adding: "This unlawful tipping of rubbish at Kidlington is appalling and has led to substantial detriment to the ecology and anguish to the local residents.

"Our authorities is pledged to eliminating this category of illegal activity in the country, by augmenting financing to combat environmental crime, hiring more personnel and introducing more severe checks and penalties for those who violate the regulations."

The apprehensions were executed on a recent Thursday by agents from a dedicated organised crime unit and come after an earlier detention of a 39-year-old from the Guildford region in the autumn. He was set free awaiting additional inquiries.