The Modern Landfill vs. Disposal Services In the past, dumps were created very simply, digging a hole in the ground and filling it with trash. They include: Hazardous waste landfills: Categorized as Subtitle C landfills, hazardous waste facilities are used explicitly to dispose of hazardous waste, meaning they are not intended for solid waste.
The Subtitle C program ensures that hazardous waste is handled properly from cradle to grave to protect the environment and human health. Subtitle C regulations encompass the treatment and transportation, generation, storage or disposal of hazardous wastes.
Industrial waste landfills: These types of landfills are designed to collect institutional and commercial waste, which often represent a significant portion of solid waste, even in suburbs and small cities. Industrial waste landfills are categorized as Subtitle D landfill sites. They focus on local and state governments as the primary implementing, regulating and planning entities for non-hazardous solid waste management.
Problems Addressed by This New Landfill Design Many of the environmental concerns attributed to landfills of the past have been addressed and eliminated as modern landfill techniques began to be used. Unsafe and Inappropriate Locations Prior to RCRA regulation, dumps were potentially created on any large, unused space with little concern for its impact on the surrounding areas.
Groundwater Contamination Another problem with older landfill design was that waste was deposited directly onto the soil with no barrier or liner. Release of Methane Gases Methane gas and carbon dioxide, also known as greenhouse gases, are natural by-products of any landfill, whether old or new. Reuse of Space In the past, when dumps were no longer usable, a final layer of soil was added to the top and, in some instances, vegetation was planted.
The Future of Modern Landfills Always looking for a way to implement more sustainable and green practices, the waste industry is developing further enhancements for the future of landfills. Bioreactors Bioreactor landfills add liquid and air to the disposed waste, which in turn accelerates the degradation of the waste. Biocovers A biocover is created when a facility uses composted yard waste as the final cover for a landfill.
Not Sure What You Need? This diagram from Advanced Disposal illustrates the elements of a modern sanitary landfill:. When the cell is completely full, it receives a final cover, or cap, much like the bottom liner.
The cap will be further covered by topsoil, which will be seeded with vegetation for the duration of the decades-long post-closure monitoring period. By far the largest environmental impact of landfilling is the production of landfill gas LFG. Although landfills are designed to minimize decomposition, organic materials do eventually break down in a landfill. When they do, LFG is the byproduct. LFG is roughly half methane and half carbon dioxide, and as such, it is a powerful greenhouse gas.
All landfills are required to collect LFG. At most landfills, the collected gas is burned off at flare stations, making landfills the third-largest source of human-related methane emissions in the United States.
Nevertheless, LFG can be utilized to make landfills greener. Instead of burning it, some landfills are converting the LFG they collect into usable energy. Sometimes the collected gas is used to power boilers or furnaces, or it can be refined into renewable natural gas. Most often, it is used to generate electricity. Whatever the end use, LFG-to-energy projects can capture 60 percent to 90 percent of the LFG generated at a landfill and displace the same amount of energy from nonrenewable sources.
Old landfills, which were unlined or only lined with clay, which could crack, also did not set aside money for post-closure monitoring. As a result, many continue to leach chemicals into nearby soil and groundwater.
Current landfills are much better at containing and monitoring their contents. But there is always a risk of future failure, and there is some evidence that all landfills leak. Perhaps the biggest stride modern landfills have made toward environmental responsibility is recognizing that not all waste belongs in a landfill.
Separate drop off locations for organic waste and hazardous materials provide a more eco-friendly alternative for disposal. It also enables the site to either compost or digest this waste to produce more sustainable by-products, such as a soil amendment or vehicle fuel for trucks.
On top of that, hazardous waste drop-off centers provide a safe place for the disposal of used motor oil, pesticides, paints and other hazardous household waste. Instead of pouring chemicals down drain pipes or into the garbage can to contaminate our environment, modern landfills ensure safe disposal.
These technological and ecological advancements help to maintain a safer, more environmentally friendly waste system. It was not until the turn of the 20th century, when urban areas began to fill up with more people and trash , that cities started doing something about their garbage.
In the s, it was common for garbage, incinerator ash and dirt to be used to fill in swamps near cities which allowed the contamination of groundwater. While we can never eliminate all contamination risks, modern landfills work to keep our cities clean and healthy as we continue researching new ways to deal with waste.
Take a look at the Sustainability section of our blog to learn how you can reduce the amount of waste you send to the landfill. Have thoughts on this topic? Head over to Twitter or Facebook and use dumpstersblog to join the conversation.
By , at least eight states will have banned plastic grocery bags. What is the legislation in your state? Skip to main content. Related Topics: Landfills. Contact Us. On this page: What is a landfill? What are the types of landfills? What is a landfill? What types of landfills are there?
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