See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy DAVID OLASEINDE Published: 02:08 BST, 28 August 2026 | Updated: 02:45 BST, 28 August 2026
Teams have finished a five-month clean-up operation of an illegal waste dump near the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire.The 150-metre-long trail of waste was deposited in a field by the A34 in Kidlington last year, prompting widespread outrage.A criminal investigation was launched and the Environment Agency (EA) declared it a critical incident in November.The watchdog has since co-ordinated the clean-up operation, with contractors starting to remove 15 to 30 lorry loads of rubbish each day in April.Over five months, teams from Acumen Waste Service removed an estimated 22,704 tonnes of rubbish, with the operation costing an estimated £6million.They dug up and shifted waste including tyres, shredded plastic and household waste from an 8,000sq metre area, which is bigger than Wembley Stadium.They have now placed concrete blocks at the entrance, and the main gate has been securely padlocked to prevent access to the site, officials said.The operation comes as part of a wider Government crackdown on illegal tips after a surge in organised waste crime across the country in recent years. Teams have completed a five-month operation to clear an illegal waste dump near the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire The operation cost an estimated £6 million and followed the Environment Agency declaring a critical incident at the site in November 2025Environment Secretary Dame Angela Eagle said: 'Communities deserve to be free from the blight of illegal waste dumping, and this clean-up shows we will bring hope back to local residents.'After years of waste crime being allowed to fester, we are taking decisive action through our crackdown, and cleaning up sites like Kidlington is just one part.'By putting more officers on the frontline and using drones to catch offenders in the act, we're putting the criminal gangs on notice that there is nowhere left to hide.'The Environment Agency shut down the Kidlington site in October 2025, with a decision taken on December 11 to clear the rubbish amid the risk of fire breaking out.There had also been concerns that pollution from the tip could spill into the nearby River Cherwell, prompting officials to install barriers to protect the waterway.Water quality sampling was regularly taken at the site but found no evidence of a significant impact on the local environment, officials said.The Environment Agency's criminal investigation has seen four people arrested. The Environment Agency coordinated the clean-up of the site near Kidlington, where an estimated 22,704 tonnes of waste had been dumped across an area of around 8,000 square metres
