Operational Costs of Applying Daily Cover Material at Sanitary Landfills in North Carolina
Abstract
Daily operations at sanitary landfills constitute a significant expense for the many local governmental units that own and operate them. Several trends effect this expense, and all are contributing to escalating landfill costs. The first trend is toward more stringent regulatory requirements for the permitting and design of new landfills. With new liner and monitoring requirements and increased public resistance to new sites, the costs of opening new landfills are becoming prohibitive for many local governments. The second trend is a result of the first. To avoid opening a new landfill, operators are doing all they can do extend the life of existing landfills. Wide-spread use of volume-reduction techniques such as compaction and incineration are evidence of this trend. Unfortunately, one very important aspect of daily landfill operations is often overlooked when concentrating on volume-reduction techniques, that of the daily cover. Having sufficient daily cover for the entire volume capacity of the landfill is crucial; because without it, previously successful efforts at volume reduction become meaningless. Daily cover, not available volume, can limit the landfill's life, and volume-reduction efforts are wasted. The shortage of available daily cover material is a reality at an increasing number of landfills.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 14, 1988
- Accession Number
- ADA197651
Entities
People
- Greg Emanuel