Criminals dump mountain of waste in field

Fly dumpers dumped a mountain of waste into a field in Oxfordshire.

The “apparent environmental disaster” is 150 m (490 ft) long and 6 m (20 ft) high.

The massive pile was discovered in a field next to the River Cherwell near Kidlington.

Calum Miller, the Liberal Democrat MP for Bicester and Woodstock, raised the issue in parliament, saying it was a “threat of environmental disaster”.

Charity Friends of the Thames said the illegal landfill was created by an organized crime group about a month ago.

Chief Executive Laura Reineke said: “This is clearly an environmental disaster.

“Every day that passes increases the risk of toxic runoff entering the river system, poisoning wildlife and threatening the health of the entire catchment.

“The Environment Agency must act now, not in the usual response time of months or years.”

A restriction decision was made by the Environmental Agency.

It is difficult to distinguish any pieces of waste as they appear to have been shredded and mixed with soil.

Some of the trash at the top of the pile has fallen over and is now only five meters from the river.

The River Cherwell is a tributary of the River Thames; this means that it flows through Oxford before joining the Thames.

Miller asked for government help to remove the illegal tip before it causes a fire or gets washed into the river system.

Addressing MPs on Thursday, he said: “Criminals have dumped a mountain of illegal plastic waste weighing hundreds of tonnes… into a floodplain adjacent to the River Cherwell in my constituency.

“River levels are rising and heat maps show waste is also heating up, increasing the risk of fire.

“The Environment Agency said it had limited resources for enforcement and the estimated cost of removal was more than the local district council’s entire annual budget.”

Environment minister Mary Creagh said the government had inherited a failing waste industry that had caused an “epidemic of illegal fly tipping”.

He told lawmakers that the agency had issued a restraining order to block further access to the site.

The agency said in a statement that the investigation is ongoing and that it has requested information.

“We share the public’s anger regarding such incidents, so we are taking action against those responsible for waste crime,” the statement said.

A. The final report of the House of Lords has been found Efforts to tackle serious waste crime are being “critically under-prioritised” despite the problem getting bigger and more complex.

Environment and Climate Change Committee an independent “root and branch” study was proposed Information on how to combat “endemic” waste crimes.