GEOTECHNICAL

CONSIDERATIONS
FOR WASTE DISPOSAL
IN LANDFILLS
by: Yvonne Estiller
Solid waste management, in its broad sense, is
concerned with the generation, on site storage,
collection, transfer, process and recovery, and disposal
of solid wastes.
FIVE strategies of the
solid waste
management :
 SOURCE
REDUCTION
 RE USE
 RECYCLING
 ENERGY FROM
WASTE
 LAND FILLING
 LAND FILLING
-A site for the disposal of solid
waste in which refuse is buried
between layers of dirt.
Importance:
 Wastes that cannot be resold as
recycles, incineration ashes, will
ultimately be disposed of in a
landfill.
 A residue that is non recyclable,
non combustible and non
compostable, making the land
filling option as the essential.
LANDFILLING
 The land fill planning and design process usually
consists of a phased approach comprising of
three stages:
1.Planning
- site selection
- site characterization
-finalization of the completed land form layout
and section
-evaluation of land fill capacity
-selection of operating methodology
2. Planning
The main design stage deals with design of land fill
components
–Liner and leachate collection facility
- Gas control facility
- Cover system
- Landfill stability surface
- Water drainage system and environmental monitoring
system
3. The construction operation design
- Site development
-construction schedules
-material and equipment requirements
-environmental control
SITE SELECTION
 Three categories:
• Economic
• Socio – economic
• Environmental

LANDFILL LAYOUT
A landfill site will comprise of the area in which the waste
will be filled as well as additional area for support facilities.
LANDFILL SECTION
 Trench landfill: Waste is
spread and compacted in
an excavated trench.

 Suited to the locations

where adequate depth of
the covering material is
available at the site and
where water table is not
shallow
 Area landfill: A bulldozer
spreads and compacts
the waste over the
prepared site with a liner
and leachate control
system
 High ground water
conditions necessitate the
use of area type landfills
 Valley landfills: Valley,
slopes, canyons etc. have
been used for landfills the
technique to place and
compact solid waste in such
landfills vary with the
geometry of the site.
LANDFILL CAPACITY

 On the basis of the landfill layout and the landfill section, the
nominal capacity of the landfill can be computed using the
contour map of the area

 The actual (usable) capacity of the landfill will depend upon the
volume occupied by the cover material (daily, intermediate,
final) as well as the compacted density of the waste.
PRINCIPLES OF DECOMPOSITION IN
LANDFILLS
 Physical decomposition of the solid waste results from the
breakdown or movement of the refuse components by
physical degradation and by the rinsing and flushing action
of the water movement.
 Chemical process resulting in refuse decomposition include
the hydrolysis, dissolution / precipitation, sorption /
desorption, and ion exchange of the refuse components.
 Biological decomposition occurs with a naturally present
bacteria. It is a complex process within landfill sites
consisting of biologically mediated sequential and parallel
pathways by which refuse is decomposed to various end
products.
LANDFILL COVER DESIGN
 Purpose of an engineered cover is to isolate the
underlying waste
• To allow the site to be returned to some beneficial use as
quickly as possible.
• To make the site aesthetically acceptable to nearby
residents.
• To accommodate settlement.
•To prevent the blowing of the litter or dust on to adjacent
properties.
• To suppress fire dangers.
• To contain gases and vapours.
•To allow placement as each cell is completed.