ES 525 Solid Waste Management
PART ONE
1. Landfill design
The landfill design must include methods for the recovery and treatment of the leachate
produced by the decomposing refuse and the venting or use of the landfill gas. The
appropriate state governmental agencies must approve full plans for landfill operation
before construction can begin. The natural setting can be selected to minimize the
possibility of wastes escaping to groundwater beneath a landfill.
There are four critical elements in a landfill:
1. A bottom liner,
2. A leachate collection system
3. Gas collection system
4. A cover, and
5. The natural hydrogeologic setting.
The natural hydrogeologic setting:
To prevent the wastes from escaping, rocks should be as tight (waterproof) as possible.
Yet if leakage occurs, the geology is to be as simple as possible so that it can easily
predict where the wastes will go. Then you can put down wells and capture the escaped
wastes by pumping. Fractured bedrock is highly undesirable beneath a landfill because
the wastes cannot be located if they escape. Mines and quarries should be avoided
because they frequently contact the groundwater.
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ES 525 Solid Waste Management
Landfill Processes: Site selection process
Site selection considerations include
● Appropriate location e.g. far from airports, flood plains
● Land availability
● Soil conditions and topography
● Geological conditions e g unstable areas, seismic activity
● Hydrologic conditions e g surface and groundwater.
● Climatic conditions e g rainfall and wind.
● Environmental and ecological conditions e g endangered species etc.
● Minimize haul distance.
● Large enough site to accommodate the SW needs of the service area.
● Compatible with the local SWM program.
● Minimize adverse effects on surrounding area and property value.
● Minimize impacts on traffic flow.
● Minimize potential for fire, spill, accidents e.g. outside flood zones.
Bottomliner
It may be one or more layers of clay or a synthetic flexible membrane (or a combination of
these). The liner effectively creates a bathtub in the ground. If the bottom liner fails,
wastes will migrate directly into the environment. There are three types of liners: clay,
plastic, and composite.
1.Clay liner Natural clay is often fractured and cracked. A mechanism called diffusion will
move organic chemicals like benzene through a three foot thick clay landfill liner in
approximately five years. Some chemicals can degrade clay.
2.Plastic liner The very best landfill liners today are made of a tough plastic film called
high density polyethylene (HDPE). A number of household chemicals will degrade HDPE,
permeating it (passing though it), making it lose its strength, softening it, or making it
become brittle and crack. Not only will household chemicals, such as moth balls, degrade
HDPE, but much more benign things can cause it to develop stress cracks, such as,
margarine, vinegar, ethyl alcohol (booze), shoe polish, peppermint oil, to name a few.
3. Composite liner A Composite liner is a single liner made of two parts, a plastic liner and
compacted soil (usually clay soil). Reports show that all plastic liners (also called Flexible
Membrane Liners, or FMLs) will have some leaks. It is important to realize that all
materials used as liners are at least slightly permeable to liquids or gases and a certain
amount of permeation through liners should be expected. Additional leakage results from
defects such as cracks, holes, and faulty seams. Studies show that a 10-acre landfill will
have a leak rate somewhere between 0.2 and 10 gallons per day.
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ES 525 Solid Waste Management
Leachate Collection System
Leachate is water that gets badly contaminated by contacting wastes. It seeps to the
bottom of a landfill and is collected by a system of pipes. The bottom of the landfill is
sloped; pipes laid along the bottom capture contaminated water and other fluid (leachate)
as they accumulate. The pumped leachate is treated at a wastewater treatment plant (and
the solids removed from the leachate during this step are returned to the landfill, or are
sent to some other landfill). If leachate collection pipes clog up and leachate remains in
the landfill, fluids can build up in the bathtub. The resulting liquid pressure becomes the
main force driving waste out the bottom of the landfill when the bottom liner fails.
1.Leachate collection ponds: Perforated pipes throughout the landfill collect leachate and
carry it to leachate collection ponds, also called sumps. Here, the leachate is tested for
chemical levels and allowed to settle.
2.Sent for treatment: Afterwards, the leachate is released to an onsite treatment facility or
off-site wastewater treatment plant. Some landfills recirculate the leachate into the
landfill so it soaks into the waste and does not reappear. This reduces the amount of
leachate in the landfill, but increases the concentration of contaminants.
3.Release: The treated leachate is then released into local bodies of water after it’s
deemed safe and clean.
Groundwater monitoring stations
Groundwater monitoring stations test water in the environment around the landfill for
leachate chemicals using pipes that directly reach the water itself. These systems
normally have wells upgradient (uphill) and downgradient (downhill) of the landfill to test
water quality.
•Upgradient wells: These wells test water before it moves under the disposal area to get a
baseline measurement of the water’s quality before it passes.
•Downgradient wells: These wells test water after it’s passed the disposal area to see if
there’s been contamination or any other impact to the groundwater.
Gas Collection System
The gas collection system uses extraction wells and pipes throughout the landfill to carry
landfill gas that’s generated when waste decomposes to treatment areas where it is then
vented, burned or converted into energy.
Final cover
➢ The final cover must be a 36” thick layer of clay. Boundaries must be well protected.
➢ Long-term usage of landfill i.e. re-usage of landfill.
➢ Once the landfill reaches design height, a final cap is placed to minimize infiltration of
rainwater.
➢ Facilitate long-term maintenance of the landfill.
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ES 525 Solid Waste Management
➢ Thefinalcover shall have a barrier soil layer.
➢ On The Top Of The barrier soil layer, there shall be a drainage layer of 15 cm.
➢ On The Top Of the drainage there shall be a vegetative layer of 45 cm to support natural
plant growth and to minimize erosion.
Reactions Occurring in a Landfill
Physical Changes: Gases diffusion, leachate movement & landfill settlement.
Chemical Reactions: Dissolution, suspension, evaporation, sorption, de-halogenation,
methanogenesis and decomposition of chemicals.
Biological Reactions: Aerobic & anaerobic reactions.
Factors affecting landfill gas and leachate generation
1. Nature of waste– amount of gas depends on the content of biodegradable matter in the
waste.
2. Moisture content– microorganisms require minimum 12% moisture for growth, thus it
is an important factor in determining gas production.
3. pH– methanogens grow only at low pH around neutrality.
4. Particle size and density– particle size affects density achieved by compaction that
affects surface area and hence volume. This affects the moisture absorption and thus the
biological degradation.
5. Temperature– Increase in temperature tends to increase in gas production. It affects
microbial activity.
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ES 525 Solid Waste Management
PART TWO
