international guidelines for landfill evaluation

ISWA – the International Solid Waste Association is a global, independent and non-profit making association, working in the public interest to promote and develop sustainable and professional waste management worldwide

GUIDELINES

International Guidelines for Landfill Evaluation

September, 2011

ISWA – the International Solid Waste Association is a global, independent and non-profit making association, working in the public interest to promote and develop sustainable and professional waste management worldwide

Prepared by Working Group on Landfill September, 2011

Copyright © ISWA 2011 all rights reserved

International Guidelines for Landfill Evaluation Page 2.

International Guidelines for Landfill Evaluation

Contents

International Guidelines (1)

for the Evaluation of the Status of Municipal Waste Landfills for Economically Developing Countries . 3

Open Dump ......................................................................................................................................... 3

Controlled or Engineered Landfill ....................................................................................................... 4

Sanitary Landfill ................................................................................................................................... 5

International Guidelines (2)

for the terms to describe the additional requirements for advanced Landfill methods ......................... 6

Sanitary Landfill ................................................................................................................................... 6

Bioreactor and Carbon-Neutral Landfills ............................................................................................. 7

Rapid Stabilization Landfill ................................................................................................................. 7

The International Guidelines for Landfill Evaluation contains essential parameters for the evaluation of landfill Standards. The ISWA Working Group on Landfill supports the transition away from open dumps toward sanitary landfilling. Where economic resources are very limited it will, in many cases, be sufficient to use rather simple methods to make substantial improvement to the environment.


Evaluation

Aesthetics/Regard for health, safety &

quality of life of neighbours &

passers-by

Groundwater protection

Surface water protection

Landfill gas Worker On-site

health and safety Social impacts

Economic considerations

Legislation Planning

Open

Dump

• No cover, no/poor compaction, ponding of contaminated water, high risk of disease vectors (rats, mosquitoes) • Accepts uncovered vehicles, leading to wind-blown debris • Poor roads leading to mud, and dust on and off-site • Major erosion problems, visible water contamination • Burning of waste common with health risks • Visual and odour impacts likely to be severe for neighbours • No fencing or limitation of access

• Site chosen with no consideration for groundwater protection (can be in inappropriate rock, gravel or sand settings) • No liner, no cover, no leachate collection pipes • No consideration for groundwater level (can be close to groundwater or seasonally in flood) • No consideration for climate (can be in wet zones with high potential for recharge of contaminants) • No groundwater monitoring, no control of groundwater use

• Waste can be in direct contact with lake, ocean, stream, pond, or wetland • Waste can be in flood plain • Runoff from waste uncontrolled and direct to surface water body • Major erosion problems, visible water contamination

• No consideration for landfill gas impacts • No liner • Often < 500 m to buildings or occupied areas, greatly increasing gas risks • Can have shallow groundwater, increasing risks of gas migration and groundwater contamination by gas • Large landfill gas risk for large, old sites

• Common to have scavengers on-site in addition to workers •Steep slopes (>1:4, V:H) common with stability risks • No checking for and rejection of hazardous waste • No safety procedures, education, or control of workers

• Provides valuable resource • Unhealthy environment • Health and safety issues of serious concern • Site not secure

• Provides a local economic resource • Cheap disposal option • Significant health care costs due to higher incidence of diseases

• Little or no legislation • Poor enforcement

• No planning

International Guidelines (1) for the Evaluation of the Status of Municipal Waste Landfills for Economically Developing Countries


Evaluation



passers-by







Controlled

or

Engineered

Landfill

• Some compaction, waste covered regularly, minimal vector control, some risk of disease vectors • Minimal re-vegetation •Accepts some uncovered vehicles, leading to wind-blown debris and odour • Engineered roads reduce ponding and dust, but still issues • Some muddy roads • Visual and odour impacts significant • Erosion channels, some ponding & muddy conditions • Birds common • No burning • Fencing, access generally limited to workers and waste dumpers

• Site selected with consideration of presence of silt or clay soils under waste • Site selected with consideration of ≥ 5 m to groundwater under waste • No liner or leachate collection • No groundwater monitoring, but no groundwater use within 1 km •Cover to limit long-term exposure of waste, though not to limit percolation

• Waste does not contact any surface water other than rare flooding (< 1 time/5 years) • High potential for visible off-site surface water impacts from leachate (e.g. wetland impact) • Runoff from waste channelled, but direct to surface water body

• No liner, though soils under site or great depth to groundwater could limit gas migration • Large landfill gas risk for large sites • No flare • No buildings < 500 m from waste, or if so, monitor gas between landfill and buildings

• Large working area with exposed waste, but incoming waste confined to specific working areas, other areas covered • Minimal checking and rejection of unwanted or hazardous wastes • Minimal education or control of workers, few safety procedures • No scavengers or scavenging away from working face and equipment • Interior slopes not steep (< 4:1), though no geotechnical stability analyses conducted •Liquid wastes allowed leading to odour, safety issues

• Reduced scavenging • Site not fully secure

• Increased operational costs • Potential to generate revenue

• Basic environmental legislation

•Planning unlikely


Evaluation



passers-by







Sanitary

Landfill

• Exterior slopes and disturbed ground re-vegetated • Roads well designed and maintained, and free of mud, dust & debris • No wind-blown dust & debris except in rare conditions • Site clean-ups regularly occur • No erosion, no vectors, minimal birds • No burning, minimal odours • Waste confined to one working face, compacted immediately, covered daily, low risk of disease vectors • Access tightly controlled and enforced •No uncovered waste allowed

• Fully lined, cover designed to control percolation • Full leachate collection system, treatment • No groundwater use within 500 m of waste • Groundwater monitoring (at least twice a year) for quality and flow direction using a designed monitoring network

• Totally isolated from surface waters, wetland, or flood plain • All waste contact runoff collected & treated, waste area surrounded by berms • Other runoff to sedimentation pond prior to discharge • No on-site ponding •No visible signs of surface water impact

• Fully lined landfill limits gas migration risks • Active gas extraction for flare or use • > 300 m to buildings, full gas monitoring system in buildings and soils • Land use control within 1 km of landfill •low landfill gas risk

• Waste covered immediately, except at working face, which is covered daily • Incoming waste confined to one working area and compacted immediately • Careful checking and routine rejection of hazardous or unwanted waste • No burning • All interior slopes < 4/1 • Worker safety training and procedures operational • Dust and vector controls operational •Few liquid wastes and tight control of their disposal

• Free from trespassers and scavengers • Site secure

• Aftercare provision necessary for an extended period of at least 30 years after closure • Revenue from landfill gas valorisation • Cost for leachate treatment

• Specific legislation and regulation, namely EU Directive 1999/31/CE

• Planning and permit requirements


Evaluation



passers-by




health and safety Social

impacts Economic

considerations Legislation Planning

Sanitary

Landfill

• Exterior slopes and disturbed ground re-vegetated • Roads well designed and maintained, and free of mud, dust & debris • No wind-blown dust & debris except in rare conditions •site clean-ups regularly occur • No erosion, no vectors, minimal birds • No burning, minimal odours • Waste confined to one working face, compacted immediately, covered daily, low risk of disease vectors • Access tightly controlled and enforced • No uncovered waste allowed

• Fully lined, cover designed to control percolation • Full leachate collection system, treatment • No groundwater use within 500 m of waste • Groundwater monitoring (at least twice a year) for quality and flow direction using a designed monitoring network

• Totally isolated from surface waters, wetland, or flood plain • All waste contact runoff collected & treated, waste area surrounded by berms • Other runoff to sedimentation pond prior to discharge • No on-site ponding • No visible signs of surface water impact

• Fully lined landfill limits gas migration risks • Active gas extraction for flare or use • > 300 m to buildings, full gas monitoring system in buildings and soils • Land use control within 1 km of landfill • low landfill gas risk

• Waste covered immediately, except at working face, which is covered daily • Incoming waste confined to one working area and compacted immediately • Careful checking and routine rejection of hazardous or unwanted waste • No burning • All interior slopes < 4/1 • Worker safety training and procedures operational • Dust and vector controls operational • Few liquid wastes and tight control of their disposal

• Free from trespassers and scavengers • Site secure

• Aftercare provision necessary for an extended period of at least 30 years after closure • Revenue from landfill gas valorisation • Cost for leachate treatment

• Specific legislation and regulation, such as EU Directive 1999/31/CE.

• Planning and permit requirements

International Guidelines (2) for the terms to describe the additional requirements for advanced Landfill methods


Evaluation

Waste Acceptance Criteria Operation

Aftercare

Bioreactor and

Carbon-Neutral

Landfills

(all features of Sanitary

Landfill plus the

following)

•Exclusion of wastes based on potential toxicity to bioreactor •Good management of wastes with very rapid anaerobic biodegradation potential •Acceptance of wet wastes and sludge’s within a broader moisture management program •Acceptance of carbon wastes for sequestration benefits •Variable charges for wastes based on impact on sequestration or biogas production

•Enhanced fire control measures •Consideration of pore pressure effects on slope stability in design, operation, monitoring •Recirculation of leachate with consideration of nitrogen treatment •Inter-related design of gas collection, leachate collection, and leachate recirculation systems •On-going leachate quality measurement to assess biodegradation •Monitoring and modelling of leachate and moisture balance •Intermediate cover designed to limit gas emissions •Enhanced monitoring for gas migration/leakage •Enhanced gas collection system

•Accept need for on-going, long-term monitoring

Rapid Stabilization Landfill (all features of Sanitary Landfill plus the following)

•Only wastes with limited or no methane production potential accepted •Pre-treatment of wastes to reduce potential for biogas production in landfill •Exclusion of sludge’s and liquid wastes •Consider control or exclusion of nitrogen-rich wastes to reduce long-term ammonia potential

•Consideration for addition of oxygen to accelerate stabilization •Treat low levels of methane release through methane oxidation in soils

•Design and operate for goal of no monitoring or aftercare after completion

international guidelines for landfill evaluation

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