Fly-tippers submerge countryside in massive pile of waste
Witness
Illegal dumpers have discarded a mountain of garbage in a rural area in Oxfordshire.
The "environmental crisis unfolding in full view" is approximately 150m (490ft) in length and 6m (20ft) high.
The huge heap has materialized in a plot of land alongside the River Cherwell near Kidlington.
Parliament representative raised the problem in parliament, saying it was "posing risk of an environmental disaster".
Protection organization stated the unlawful rubbish dump was created about a month ago by an illegal operation.
"This represents an ecological disaster developing in plain sight.
"Daily that goes by raises the risk of hazardous seepage reaching the waterways, polluting fauna and threatening the condition of the whole catchment.
"Regulatory bodies must act immediately, not in the distant future, which is their standard reaction time."
Legal prohibition had been put in place by the Environment Agency.
It is hard to recognize any individual items of rubbish as it seems to have been pulverized with soil blended.
Some of the waste from the top of the heap has collapsed and is now merely five meters from the waterway.
The River Cherwell is a tributary of the River Thames, which means it runs through Oxford before joining the Thames.
Government broadcast
The MP asked the administration for assistance to clear the illegal site before it caused a blaze or was washed away into the water network.
Speaking to MPs on Thursday, he declared: "Criminals have dumped a massive amount of illegal synthetic materials... amounting to many tons, in my constituency on a floodplain adjacent to the River Cherwell.
"River levels are increasing and temperature readings indicate that the waste is also heating up, increasing the danger of blaze.
"Environmental authorities stated it has inadequate capabilities for compliance, that the anticipated price of disposal is greater than the whole yearly allocation of the local district council."
Environment minister commented the authorities had inherited a struggling recycling sector that had caused an "growing issue of unauthorized dumping".
She advised MPs the authority had implemented a access ban to halt further access to the site.
In a statement, the agency stated it was looking into the situation and asked for evidence.
It stated: "We acknowledge the community's anger about incidents like this, which is why we take action against those responsible for environmental offenses."
A recently published investigation found initiatives to combat major environmental offenses have been "extremely under-prioritised" notwithstanding the situation becoming more extensive and more sophisticated.
The Environment and Climate Change Committee proposed an autonomous "thorough" investigation into how "endemic" environmental offenses is dealt with.
