Fly-tippers cover field in mountain of rubbish
Billy Burnell
Fly-tippers have discarded a massive amount of garbage in a rural area in Oxfordshire.
The "environmental crisis developing in plain sight" is approximately 150m (490ft) extending and 6m (20ft) high.
The huge heap has materialized in a field alongside the River Cherwell near Kidlington.
A local MP brought up the issue in parliament, declaring it was "risking an environmental disaster".
An environmental charity said the illegal waste site was formed around a recently by an illegal operation.
"This constitutes an ecological disaster unfolding in public view.
"Every day that passes raises the danger of hazardous run-off getting into the aquatic network, polluting wildlife and threatening the condition of the entire catchment.
"The Environment Agency must take action immediately, not in months or years, which is their usual action timeframe."
A restriction order had been implemented by the regulatory body.
It is hard to distinguish any particular bits of waste as it appears to have been shredded with dirt mixed in.
A portion of the waste from the uppermost part of the pile has toppled and is now merely five metres from the river.
The River Cherwell is a tributary of the River Thames, which indicates it runs through Oxford before connecting with the Thames.
Official recording
The representative petitioned the administration for assistance to eliminate the illegal site before it resulted in a fire or was carried into the river system.
Addressing MPs on this week, he declared: "Illegal operators have dumped a huge quantity of unlawful plastic waste... amounting to substantial weight, in my constituency on a floodplain next to the River Cherwell.
"Water heights are rising and temperature readings demonstrate that the garbage is also heating up, elevating the threat of combustion.
"The Environment Agency reported it has limited resources for enforcement, that the projected price of removal is larger than the whole twelve-month allocation of the municipal authority."
Environment minister said the government had taken over a underperforming disposal business that had caused an "widespread problem of unlawful fly-tipping".
She told MPs the agency had issued a access ban to stop additional entry to the site.
In a declaration, the authority stated it was investigating the matter and requested for information.
It said: "We share the citizens' concern about occurrences like this, which is why we respond against those responsible for illegal dumping."
A recently published report found efforts to combat serious illegal dumping have been "severely under-prioritised" even though the issue becoming larger and more advanced.
A parliamentary committee suggested an independent "comprehensive" inquiry into how "endemic" environmental offenses is dealt with.
