Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
Waste management
Dr. Wan Zuhairi Wan Yaacob
Program Geologi, UKM
2 UKM Pakarunding Sdn.
Bhd
Satellite images of Landfill sites in
Selangor
AIR HITAM SANITARY LANDFILL (CLOSED)River
JERAM SANITARY LANDFILL
River
River
3 UKM Pakarunding Sdn.
Bhd
Satellite images of Landfill sites in
Selangor
BUKIT TAGAR SANITARY LANDFILLSG. SEDU LANDFILL
4 UKM Pakarunding Sdn.
Bhd
Kelana Jaya Landfill
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
Concepts of waste management
• (1) DILUTE AND DISPERSE
– Small amount of waste
– few factories and sparse population
• (2) CONCENTRATE AND CONTAIN
– Not always achieved : leakage
• (3) RESOURCE RECOVERY
– Converted waste to useful materials
– Waste = resources ; waste-to-energy
– Eg: old computers – “NEW” gold mining
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and assessment
Dilute and disperse
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and assessment
SOLID WASTE
• Types of solid waste:--– (1) Light industrial
waste
– (2) Construction waste
– (3) Demolition waste
– (4) Garbage (home) and rubbish (paper, etc)
– (5) Street refuse
Cinders = Residue of coal or wood/ashes
• Solid waste:
– 7.2 million tons/year OR 18,900 tons/day
(year 2002; 21million of population).
SOLID WASTE
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
Hazardous waste
• Toxic - cause injury or death if swallowed, absorbed, or inhaled.
• Flammable - can be ignited by a flame, spark, ignition source or hot surface under almost all temperature conditions.
• Corrosive - a chemical or its vapors that can burn or destroy living tissues at the site of contact, and deteriorate or wear away the surface of a material.
• Explosive - violently bursting when exposed to pressure or heat.
E-waste
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Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
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Method of disposal
• 1. Onsite disposal
• 2. Composting
• 3. Open dumps
• 4. Sanitary landfills
• 5. Incineration
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
1. On-site disposal
• Mechanical grinding of kitchen food
waste – “Flintstone”
• The garbage is ground and flushed into
a kitchen sink
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and assessment
2. Composting
• Biochemical process :Organic materials decompose to humus like material
• Excellent method to recycle material
• to enrich soils
• Reduce the amount of material sent to local landfills.
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
Composting
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
3. Open dumps
• Oldest and most common way
• Wherever land is available; no safety,
health hazards, aesthetic degradation
• Pile of waste – ignite and burn
• Health hazard
– Breeding pests, polluting air, contaminating
surface and groundwater
• Still common in developing countries
(Malaysia ?? – 20 years behind !!)
• Illegal dumps associated with
scheduled waste
– 2002 to 2006: 107 cases
– 60% in the state of Selangor (the most
developed state in Malaysia)
Geo-Environmental Engineering
2008 :: Kyoto University, Japan ::
June 12-14, 2008
Illegal dumps
Toxic waste that was illegally dumped at Kg.
Sungai Gatom, in Labis, Johor.
Januari 2006
Geo-Environmental Engineering
2008 :: Kyoto University, Japan ::
June 12-14, 2008
Example of illegal dumping of toxic waste in Malaysia
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
Open dumps pose the following health,
safety, and environmental threats:
• Fire and explosion
• Inhalation of toxic gases
• Injury to children playing on or around the dump site
• Disease
• Contamination of streams, rivers and lakes
• Contamination of soil and groundwater
• Contamination of drinking water
• Damage to plant and wildlife habitats
• Decrease in the quality of life to nearby residents
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
Open dumps
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
OPEN DUMPS
Liquids produced in landfill
Contaminate stream and groundwater
Debris and odors
Decomposing
wastes burn and
produce fires and
smoke
Birds and disease carrying
rodents and insects
Rodent – rats, mouse, squirrel
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
LANDFILL
OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND
NIMBY – Not in my back yard
NIABY (Not In Anyone's Backyard)
BANANA -Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anything
NOTE (Not Over There, Either)
NOPE (Not On Planet Earth)
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
April 2007
A total of 261 landfills; 111 were
closed.
From 150 active landfills, 10 are
sanitary (engineered)
MHLG – Ministry of Housing and Local Government
Landfill in Malaysia
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
What Happens to Trash in a Landfill?
• Stay there for a very long time.
• Inside a landfill: little oxygen and little
moisture. --trash does not break down very
rapidly.
• 40-year-old newspapers have been found
with easily readable print.
• Landfills are not designed to break down
trash, merely (only) to bury it.
• When a landfill closes, the site must be
monitored and maintained for up to 30 years!
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
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What is landfill? (1)
• Pleasant term for a garbage dump
• Located in a cavity in the ground.
• When full, it may be covered up and
look like part of the land.
• Today's landfills are sanitary
• Special technology to eliminate
methane gas and toxic leachate.
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
Sanitary landfill
Method of solid waste disposal that
functions without creating a hazard to
public health or safety
(Definition by American Society of Civil
Engineering, ASCE)
A method of disposing of solid wastes on land without
creating nuisances or hazards to public health or
the environment.
Using the principles of engineering the solid waste is
confined to the smallest practical area, reduced
to the smallest practical volume, and covered
with a layer of earth at the conclusion of each
day’s operation (daily cover), or at more frequent
intervals as may be necessary.
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
Sanitary landfill
The Technical Guideline for Sanitary Landfill, Design and Operation. MHLG, Malaysia 2006
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
Sanitary landfill
• Emerged in 1930s
• Two types: area landfill & depression
landfill
• Refuse is deposited, compacted and
covered
• Potential hazards:
– (1) Leachate (i.e. waste juice !!)
– (2) Landfill gas
Classification of sanitary landfills levels
Level 0 – open dumps
Level 1 – controlled tipping
Level 2 – sanitary landfill with a bund and
daily cover soil
Level 3 – sanitary landfill with leachate
recirculation system
Level 4 – sanitary landfill with leachate
treatment facilities
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
Sg. Sabai, Hulu Selangor.
Kyoto JapanAmpar Tenang Landfill
31 UKM Pakarunding Sdn. Bhd
Level of sanitary landfill system
Level Description
Level O Open dumpsite
Level I Controlled tipping
Level II Sanitary landfill with bund and daily
cover
Level IIII Sanitary landfill with leachate
recirculation system
Level IV Sanitary landfill with leachate
treatment facilities and MORE
Size of RISK
• Monitoring
• Water quality
• Liner facility
Lower impact, fewer
countermeasures for
closure.
New facility should be designed to
achieve minimum Level 3 landfill
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
Sanitary Landfill
Advantages Disadvantages
1. Most Economic method
2. Low initial investment
3. Operation in a short time
period
4. All types of waste – all in
one (MMA !!!)
5. Completed sites – other
purposes
1. Not suitable in densely
populated area
2. Require daily maintenance
3. Methane and other gases
4. Leachate – problem for
years
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
LEACHATE (1)
• A liquid: result of water seeping into
and through the wastes.
• The water dissolves part of the
organic and inorganic matter.
• Exit the bottom of the landfill --
contaminants to the groundwater
and/or surface water.
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
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• Strength and nature depend on:--
– (1) the composition of waste
– (2) length of time – contact with
waste
– (3) amount of water in waste
LEACHATE (2)
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
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1. Leachate
The values are expressed in mg/L.
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LEACHATE
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• 45% to 60% methane (Colorless; odorless, explosive)
• 40% to 60% carbon dioxide.
• Small amounts of nitrogen, oxygen,
ammonia, sulfides, hydrogen, carbon
monoxide
• Nonmethane organic compounds
(NMOCs) such as trichloroethylene,
benzene, and vinyl chloride
Landfill gas (1)Biogas
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
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Landfill gas (2)
Evolution of gas in landfill
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and assessment
Initial decomposition of waste
via aerobic biological processes
(air pockets in fill)
O2
exhausted soon the aerobic
biodegradation started
anaerobic
Stage 1: acid formation (complex arganic
acetic acid, propionic acid, pyruvic acid)
Stage 2: methane formation (methanogenesis)
CO2 is a main gas
produce during aerobic stage
Weeks or months
CH4 & CO2 are main gaseous end products at anaerobic stage
End ratio: CH4 (55%) CO2 (45%)
Achieved after 2-3 years
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
• Methane is highly explosive when mixed with air at a volume between its LEL of 5% and its UEL of 15%.
• At concentrations below 5% and above 15%, methane is not explosive.
LEL – Lower explosion limit
UEL – Upper explosion limit
Landfill gas (3)
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
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??
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
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Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
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Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
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1999
An 8-year-old girl was burned on her arms and legs when playing in an
Atlanta playground. The area was reportedly used as an illegal
dumping ground many years ago. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution 1999)
1994 While playing soccer in a park built over an old landfill in North Carolina, a
woman was seriously burned by a methane explosion.
1987 Off-site gas migration is suspected to have caused a house to explode in
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (EPA 1991)
1984 Landfill gas migrated to and destroyed one house near a landfill in Akron,
Ohio.Ten houses were temporarily evacuated. (EPA 1991)
1983 An explosion destroyed a residence across the street from a landfill in
Cincinnati, Ohio. Minor injuries were reported. (EPA 1991)
Landfill Gas Explosions
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
The basic parts of a landfill
• Bottom liner system
– separates trash and leachate from groundwater
• Cells (old and new)
– The trash is stored within the landfill
• Storm water drainage system
– collects rain water that falls on the landfill
• Leachate collection system
– collects water that has percolated through the landfill itself and contains leachate
• Methane collection system
– collects methane gas that is formed during the breakdown of trash
• Covering or cap
– seals off the top of the landfill
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
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The cross-section of a municipal solid waste
landfill
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
Cross section of a landfill
Landfill liner
• Natural landfill liner of clayey material
• Potential for leakage accumulation
• Soil type determine the rate of leakage
flow
• Clayey material has very small flow rate
and retard the movement of leakage
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and assessment
Compacted clay and geomembrane
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and assessment
Geomembrane (HDPE)
Compacted clay soil
Bukit Tagar Landfill
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
Geosynthetic clay liner (GCL)
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and assessment
Bottom lining systems for municipal waste landfills from different regulations
and recommendations
JAPAN
K<
1x1
0-8
m/s
ec
>0.5m
(Kamon, 2001)
MALAYSIA
Landfill liner
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and assessment
Landfill monitoring
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
Landfill monitoring
Idealised diagrams showing map view (a) and cross section (b) of a landfill with a
double liner of clay and plastic and a leachate collection system.
Recommended monitoring parameters and frequency for medias
Monitoring
media/parameters
Item and parameters Frequency Location
Preliminary site inspection Surrounding environment
Facility condition
Nuisance condition
Once before
monitoring
-
Leachate pH, BOD, COD, Nitrogen
(ammonia, nitrate, nitrite),
ORP, EC, TOC
4 times/ year 1 point / leachate
pond
Landfill gas O2, N2, CH4, CO2, H2S,
temperature
2 times/year 2 points/site
Land subsidence Topographic height of the
top of landfill
Once/year 1 point/landfill
block
Groundwater Groundwater benchmark
parameters
once./year 3 points/site
Surface water Effluents standard
parameters
Once/year 2 points/stream
(Guideline for safe closure and rehabilitation of MSW landfill sites, MHLG 2006)
Hydrological Monitoring
-- Placement Of Monitoring Wells
Sg Labu
Pusat Serenti
Groundwater flow
58 UKM Pakarunding Sdn.
Bhd
Ampar Tenang Landfill
IRPA Research Project on Groundwater Contamination (2004)
BH1
BH7
BH3
BH6
BH2
BH4
BH5
59 UKM Pakarunding Sdn.
Bhd
Various types of monitoring wells
Air Hitam Landfill Jeram Landfill Kundang Landfill
Bukit Tagar Landfill
Ampar Tenang Landfill
(source: Bukit Tagar environmental report) (source: Kelana Jaya Landfill report)
#1
ASTM D5787 - 95(2009) Standard Practice for Monitoring Well Protection
Kelana Jaya ex-Landfill
•Fence (lock)
•Concrete base
•Buffer zone
•well head
60 UKM Pakarunding Sdn.
Bhd
Ampar Tenang Landfill UpstreamDownstream
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
INCINERATOR (1)
• Burning waste in large furnaces (900-1000oC)
• Segregated and burnt ASH.
• Ash floats in hot air -- FLY ash.
• Ash that is left in the furnace after burning –BOTTOM ash
• Fly and bottom ash --- high concentrations of dangerous toxins such as dioxins and heavy metals.
• Disposing of this ash is a problem.
• The ash that is buried at the landfills leaches the area and cause severe contamination.
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
• Reduce volume of waste --- 75 to 95%
• 2 advantages
– (1) Reduce the volume of waste
– (2) Generating electrical power
• Consider as treatment; not disposal
INCINERATOR (2)
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Apparatus to purify gases
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Incinerator
(Kyoto Uni, Japan)
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Geology and landfill
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
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THE NATURAL HYDROGEOLOGIC SETTING
• You want the geology to do two contradictory things for
you.
– (i) To prevent the wastes from escaping, you want rocks as
tight (waterproof) as possible.
– (ii) Yet if leakage occurs, you want the geology to be as
simple as possible so you 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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Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
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Which one is better for landfill?
(a) (b)
Aug-09 STAG3042 - Environmental issues
and assessment
27th August 2009 – Peperiksaan Pertengahan Semester
12.15-1.15pm
satu jam sahaja
Tempat: makmal peta
TAMATT ha nk y o u f o r y o ur a t t e n t ion…