Keywords alternative, landfill, covers, evapotranspiration, pollution, reclamation Introduction Clearly, the issue of waste management in the United States and the world is a significant one. Waste continues to pile higher every year, and landfills are filling up faster than ever (Albright et al
The end-result is contamination of the surrounding environmental system, especially via soil conditions and the local water table. Cleanup costs for contaminated landfill sites in the United States are already amount to several billion dollars (Dwyer, "Finding" 58)
The end-result is contamination of the surrounding environmental system, especially via soil conditions and the local water table. Cleanup costs for contaminated landfill sites in the United States are already amount to several billion dollars (Dwyer, "Finding" 58)
The following literature review on the subject of alternative landfill covers reveals that the new systems being developed and implemented are more than ready to replace existing, conventional techniques. Literature Review The problem with conventional landfill covers The conventional approach to landfill mediation and covers has been "entombment and preservation" (Hauser 1)
As a water impermeable barrier, clay has an impressive track record. Thus, it is little wonder that clay has been enlisted to serve as the water barrier that is present in nearly all landfills to prevent water infiltration (Koerner and Daniel 56)
Though actually forbidden by regulation in some places, there is research to suggest that cellulose covers could provide reasonable protection and sequestration of landfill contaminants. In the case of a recent study, researchers examined the effects of covering a landfill with waste cellulose material produced during the paper recycling process (Panarotto et al
The researchers found that, in fact, the cover method had no negative effect on the landfill and produced no leached contaminants more significant than those produced from a clay compacted, conventional cover. The true potential of this cover type is in its extreme cost effectiveness, the fact that it could serve as an outlet for lime waste, and the sludge actually enhances and hastens natural decomposition of the landfill waste (Rhew and Barlaz 499)
In order to fulfill the federal regulations, the landfills are designed and operated in an efficient way and are located in such areas which are away from the residential areas. It is essential to carefully monitor this whole process, as this method of disposing waste results in the generation of landfill gas (Chalvatzaki & Lazaridis, 2010)
Landfill gas is produced as a result of three processes which takes place when the waste material is disposed into landfills. These three processes are (Crawford & Smith, 1985): 1
Land-filling of one ton waste material results in the generation of around 62 cubic meters methane which is equivalent to the 0.854 ton of carbon dioxide (Themelis, 2003)
Land-filling of one ton waste material results in the generation of around 62 cubic meters methane which is equivalent to the 0.854 ton of carbon dioxide (Themelis, 2003)
The objective of landfill reclamation in Tel Aviv was excavation of the waste "for the recovery of soil amendment." (Strange, nd) the process involved excavation of the material and transportation to a conveyor belt
As a result of resource recovery and recycling, less than 12% of the volume of municipal waste generated in Lancaster County ends up at the Frey Farm Landfill for disposal." (Forster, 2001) Additionally related by Forster (2001) is: "The RRF began, in February 1991 other steps for preservation of the landfill space through excavation and incineration of waste that was buried in the landfill's first cell which was filled to a capacity
At the same time, it earned $53 billion more than the entire consumer durables industry combined." (Schmidt, 2001) BACKGROUND Landfill mining was first spoken of in a 1953 article on the processes that had been used at a landfill operated in Tel Aviv, Israel
Any cost that relates to soil can rapidly escalate the cost of the project." (Findlay, 1995) the example provided is: "
Even here, however, some of the needs and equipment are the same for recycling concrete as they are for processing it for landfill disposal. Both processes require that the concrete be broken down to a certain degree -- in recycling, this is so the concrete and be better "purified" by passing it through screeners, while landfills are simply trying to maximize the efficiency of the physical space and the equipment being used by working in thin layers to pack everything as tight as possible: concrete dust can get squeezed much thinner than large chunks of the building material (Bliss, 2011; Everett, 2009)
1. The process of site selection, which involves careful geotechnical investigation, including delineation of underlying geology's attenuation potential and hydrogeological surveys (Allen, Taylor, Schmoll, Howard, Chilton & Chorus, 2006)