A 39-year-old man from the Guildford area has been arrested in connection with the illegal dumping of a mountain of waste by the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire.
Tonnes of waste were dumped in a field alongside the river, outside Kidlington. The scale of the dump came to light after campaigners posted images. Local MP Calum Miller has called for the government to issue an urgent directive for its clearance before it causes irreparable damage to the river.
The criminal investigation is being led by the Environment Agency (EA) with support from the South East Regional Organised Crime Unit. Anna Burns, the EA’s area director for the Thames, said: 'The appalling illegal waste dump in Kidlington has rightly provoked outrage...We have been working round the clock...to bring the perpetrators to justice.'
Suspicions of illegal dumping were first raised in the summer. The EA sent a cease and desist letter to the landowner in July, but satellite images show the waste was dumped in September. A court order to close the site was granted on 23 October. The EA says officials are working to deploy protective barriers to stop waste polluting the river.
