Technical Landfills and Waste Management

In this chapter, we review the main results of electrical and electromagnetic prospecting applied to the characterization and monitoring of municipal waste landfills in the last decade. Among all the geophysical surveys, these methods are the most used for subsurface investigations of landfills since they provide a cost-effective approach that allows for detailed and non-invasive imaging of the subsurface in terms of the electrical properties, down to depths which generally vary from a few tens of centimeters to several tens of meters. Nevertheless, the indirect geophysical mapping needs the direct even if punctual information from boreholes and wells for an accurate reconstruction of the contaminated zones. Electrical and electromagnetic methods are used for multiple purposes that include mapping landfill boundaries, measuring waste volume and composition, as well as identifying and tracking leachate plumes. In particular, electrical methods are widely used for leachate detection (both inside and outside the landfill) and for the geometrical reconstruction of the landfill using electrical conductivity and chargeability as the main proxies. Low-frequency electromagnetic methods are mostly used for a hydrogeological characterization and extensive screening of the high-conductive areas associated to the leachate accumulation. These methods have lower resolution compared to the electrical techniques but often allow greater depth of investigation. High-frequency electromagnetic surveys are instead mainly focused on the shallow part of the landfill for detection of defects on the covering liner and characterization of the covering layer. We discuss recent results related to the topic providing updated references in relation to the specific applications and emphasizing the importance of site-specific validation through direct information. At last, a special focus is given to novel trends, emerging techniques and data integration by machine learning-based approaches for mapping and monitoring of municipal solid waste landfills.

The term “Solid Waste” based on the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), means any garbage or refuse, sludge from water and wastewater treatment plants, or air pollution control facilities, and other discarded material, resulting from industrial, commercial, mining, and agricultural operations, and from community activities. It is important to note that the definition of solid waste is not limited to the physical solid state. Many solid wastes are liquid, semi-solid, or contain gaseous material. Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) more commonly known as trash or garbage, originally included any discards in urban areas, may contain product packaging, grass clippings, furniture, clothing, bottles, food scraps, newspapers, appliances, and batteries. The comprehensive waste management system generally encompasses four stages: (1) waste generation, (2) collection and transport, (3) physical/biological/thermal treatment, and (4) landfilling. Considering all environmental, economic, social, and political aspects, one could evaluate and select the best option to handle any of the four above-mentioned stages in a comprehensive waste management system. Furthermore, identifying the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of the waste stream is essential in the selection process. The first step in determining the characteristics of MSW is to identify the main sources of MSW in the study area. Resources can be classified based on generation tonnage, location, and existing laws and regulations. Subsequently, the tonnage of waste in resources should be estimated. MSW generation per capita depends on various factors such as the level of public welfare, type of economic activities, population distribution, climate, culture, and customs. The main physical/chemical/biological properties of MSW include density, material composition, particle size distribution, moisture content, and heating value. Identifying waste characteristics would be especially useful to design and to operate recycling or energy recovery facilities. Preparation of samples with appropriate size (to estimate optimal accuracy), separation of components, and necessary analysis are essential to determine waste characteristics.

Landfilling and open dumping have been the most widely used municipal solid waste (MSW) management strategies over the past decades due to lower costs and less treatment efforts. However, landfilling continues to be an acceptable final disposal strategy for MSW. Non-sanitary landfill sites (lacking modern environmental technology) that rely on direct landfilling without waste pre-treatment pose a significant threat to the entire ecosystem. Many of these sites are situated in environments adjacent to residential districts or water bodies, affecting the local environment and population health. The assessment of the environmental impact of landfills is thus a key issue in the literature that has recently received more attention as a result of growing environmental concerns. This chapters reviews the major impacts due to waste mismanagement worldwide, particularly in developing countries where the unsustainable management of solid waste is common. Potential analytes and composition found in MSW landfills and their related risk assessment are also highlighted in this book chapter with a focus on heavy metals accumulation. This narrative literature review assessed global issues due to improper waste management and showing how potential contaminants found within landfills waste can affect the environment and human health. It can also be of reference for scholars and stakeholders to evaluate and estimate the potential risk posed by poor MSW management in order to improve sustainability at a global level.

Municipal solid waste (MSW) refers to the waste generated by households, businesses, and institutions in urban areas. It is a complex mixture of materials, including food waste, plastics, paper, glass, metals, and yard waste. The characteristics of municipal solid waste can vary depending on factors such as the size and density of the population, consumption patterns, and waste management practices. The impacts of MSW are significant. It can affect the environment, public health, and the economy. Improperly managed MSW can result in air, water, and soil pollution, leading to environmental degradation and health problems. In addition, MSW can attract pests and vermin, creating public health risks. The accumulation of MSW can also cause aesthetic problems and reduce property values. Effective management of MSW can mitigate these impacts. The most common methods of MSW management include landfilling, incineration, and recycling. Landfills are the most commonly used method of MSW disposal, but they can pose environmental risks if not properly designed and maintained. Incineration can reduce the volume of MSW and generate energy, but it can also produce air pollution. Recycling can reduce the volume of MSW and conserve resources, but it requires significant infrastructure and education to be effective. In conclusion, MSW is a significant challenge for urban areas worldwide, with complex characteristics and significant impacts. Effective management of MSW requires a multifaceted approach that considers environmental, public health, and economic factors.

Municipal solid wastes threaten the environment, resulting from landfills, open burning, careless dumping, etc. Waste is being discarded in increasing amounts worldwide and has a diverse composition. Planning, designing, operating, or updating solid waste management systems requires careful consideration of the properties of municipal solid waste (MSW). Understanding local waste characteristics is crucial in developing efficient waste management strategies, as these characteristics are influenced by cultural, climatic, socioeconomic, and institutional capabilities. Inadequate municipal solid waste management has detrimental effects on the environment and poses risks to various forms of life, including human health. Untreated and inadequately managed municipal solid waste constitutes the principal causative factor behind numerous illnesses and diseases prevalent within a specific locality or even at a national level. Landfills produce a considerable amount of the potent greenhouse gas methane. The decomposition of municipal solid waste is the primary cause of this. Therefore, the overabundance of municipal solid waste affects the environment and human health and should be adequately addressed. This chapter covered the characteristics of municipal solid waste, its composition, factors that affect or influence municipal stable waste characteristics, and its impacts on the environment and human health. It aims to address the effects of municipal solid waste along with its complex features.

This book chapter provides a comprehensive analysis of the utilization and functioning of sanitary landfills within developing economies, focusing on their intricate social and environmental repercussions. The chapter delves into the complex dynamics that underlie the operation of these waste disposal sites and examines the multifaceted challenges they engender, as well as the potential avenues for positive change they offer. Through an exploration of the social dimensions, the chapter highlights how sanitary landfills often exacerbate existing inequalities, impact livelihoods, and pose health risks to marginalized communities. It emphasizes the significance of integrating local perspectives, community engagement, and socioeconomic strategies into waste management policies to ensure equitable outcomes. By amalgamating insights from both social and environmental spheres, the chapter concludes with a call for comprehensive waste management strategies that holistically address the complexities of sanitary landfill use in developing economies. It advocates for collaborative efforts between policymakers, practitioners, and researchers to reshape waste management policies, incorporating innovative engineering solutions while considering cultural contexts. Ultimately, the chapter aims to inspire informed dialogue, innovative policy formulation, and transformative action for sustainable waste management practices that safeguard the well-being of communities and the environment.

Environmental hazard from open dumping is a severe problem occurring around the world. The composition of waste from most of developing countries accounts for more than 50% of organic matter. Prolonged incomplete handling of solid waste or lack of management at disposal sites has caused significant environmental and social challenges across the world in these regions such as pollution of nearby water supplies, pollution of groundwater, enhanced mosquito breeding sites, unintentional landfill gas fire, microbial pollution from atmospheric dust, atmospheric contaminantscreating unpleasant and highly toxic gases and Volatile Organic Carbons (VOCs), emission of green house gases (GHGs) damage to vegetation, air pollution leading to global warming etc. Among the sources of water pollution, open dumpsites have been identified as one of the significant threats. A significant amount of metal release namely Cd, As, Cr, Fe can be occurred by the disposal methods such as open dumps. Disastrous events like “dumpslides”, fires have been recorded worldwide causing casualties due to the mismanagement of open dumpsites. Composting, resource recovery, waste mining, use of bio covers are useful techniques which can be applied to existing open dumpsites. This review will address the environmental pressure from open dump sites as and the futuristic approaches in waste management aligning with Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and circular economy.

The proper disposal of solid waste entails existence of sanitary landfills. This study aims to assess the reality of two main sanitary landfills in the West Bank of Palestine. Literature review, visits, and onsite evaluation has been conducted to the two sanitary landfills in Palestine. In addition, there were interviews with key persons in the joint services councils for solid waste, responsible for managing these landfills, as well other officials in the relevant institutions. The reality of sanitary landfills management, challenges faced, and impacts on public health and the environment need to be understood, especially in the light of unstable political conditions and difficult economic situation. Presently, the two main sanitary landfills exist in the West Bank are Zahret Al-Finjan landfill in Jenin, and Al-Minyah landfill in Bethlehem. The increasing generation of solid waste in the study area shortens life span of the landfill and therefore threatens the environment. Strategic planners and decision makers must work on establishing new sanitary landfill sites or extending existing ones with new cells. The results confirmed that the two main sanitary landfills in the West Bank face many technical problems including the absence of gas collection, leachate treatment, and odor control systems. These problems led to negative impacts on the neighboring population, agricultural lands, water resources, and air quality, especially after landfill burning from time to time. Policy and decision makers have to implement immediate interventions for a proper management and disposal of solid waste system and protection of human health and the environment of Palestine.

Increasing industrial waste generation is a matter of global concern and should be encountered solemnly and critically. The implications of different industrial wastes on the environment and human health have become more critical and pertinent around the world over the recent years. The conceivable leaching and accumulation of the toxic contaminants from these industrial wastes into the environmental matrices concomitantly affect human health and other living organisms. Over recent years, various researchers have studied the control of industrial waste pollution from the perspective of evaluating proper management strategies, terminal disposal methods, and other waste utilization techniques. This warrants an analysis of the various treatment and disposal methods currently available in industrial waste management. Hence, the current study was initiated with the goal to provide an overview of the global scenario in industrial waste generation, their environmental and health implications, and the different industrial waste management techniques currently employed.

In recent years, landfills have become well-known worldwide as sanctuaries for various pollutants. Due to various reasons, landfills receive a massive amount of plastic daily. Then, this plastic waste is degraded, making it one of the most significant sources of microplastics (MPs) in landfill environments. Later, this enormous amount of MPs is dispersed over the landfills and contaminates nearby leachate, soil, groundwater, and aquatic bodies, posing a severe ecotoxicological risk. Besides, MPs can carry antibiotic-resistance genes and hazardous pollutants due to their affinity for organic and inorganic particles. Thus, landfills can be hubs for emerging diseases and destroy human health. Nevertheless, despite the large MP production and its significant ecotoxicological effects, not much deep attention has been drawn to this issue. Furthermore, some technologies, such as biochemical, flocculation, sedimentation, membrane filtration, coagulation, and oxidation photo-electrolysis, have been used recently to remove MPs from landfill environments, which have less efficiency than some of the newly invented technologies. Therefore, this book chapter provides a significant idea regarding the formation, detection, and distribution of MPs in surrounding environments. This book chapter also highlights these MPs’ associated environmental and health risks. In addition, this book chapter evaluates upgrading removal technologies of MPs from landfills. Overall, this book chapter focuses on the importance of adequately managing landfills, monitoring MP pollution, and implementing upgrading MP removal technologies. Furthermore, more research is needed regarding these issues for the betterment of Mother Nature.