‘Majority’ of 21,000 tonnes Kidlington A34 waste gone

Senior councillors from the authority visited the site earlier this week to see progress on cleaning up the mixed domestic and commercial rubbish.

The Environment Agency and its Yorkshire-based contractors are actively clearing the 150-metre-long site, a six-month operation that began in mid-April 2026.

Costing around £7m, the authorities are hoping to claw back the money from those responsible as part of their punishment.

Cherwell councillors at the Kidlington dump earlier this week (Image: Cherwell District Council)

A Cherwell District Council’s spokesman said: “Yesterday a number of our Kidlington councillors, including leader of the council [Lesley] McLean, and executive members [Lisa] Smith and [Ian] Middleton, visited the Kidlington waste site to receive updates on the removal operation.

“They had the opportunity to meet with the Environment Agency and Acumen Waste Services to discuss the clean-up and were pleased to see the large amount of progress that has been made.

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“The majority of the waste has now been removed and the team are on track to complete their work on schedule.”

Some 400 lorries full of waste have now contributed to the supersite’s removal alongside the A34, the Environment Agency said in a previous update around two weeks ago.

Cherwell councillors at the Kidlington dump earlier this week (Image: Cherwell District Council)

Between 15 and 30 lorry loads of rubbish are being removed daily with specialist teams working “at pace” to clear up the rubbish.

At the southern part of the site, the area is narrower and more confined, meaning work is more complex and will take a “little more time”.

But it’s still expected that work to clean up the site will be finished on time in the early autumn.

Criminal gangs dumped a massive pile of shredded plastic, tyres, and household waste stretching 150m (490ft) long and up to 6m (20ft) deep—covering an area larger than a football pitch (approximately two acres).

Fears had been raised that the waste could potentially flow into the River Cherwell, but the Environment Agency insists this has been managed ever since it became aware of the site in July 2025.

Samples are being taken from the water every two weeks to keep track on its condition and to be confident no waste is spilling into it.

Four men have been arrested in connection with the dump, including a 39‑year‑old man from the Guildford area, a 69‑year‑old in Andover, a 54‑year‑old from Slough and a 52‑year‑old from Ashford in Surrey.

The site is being treated as a live crime scene, with fencing and large sandbags installed between the waste pile and the river as protective measures.