What safety procedures are required during the active life of a landfill site?
Managing a landfill site is a complex and scientific affair subject to rigorous scrutiny by the WRA and HSE. Deposit Rubbish is deposited in consistent even layers according to strict engineering procedures. These ensure safe decomposition and a stable body of refuse. Monitoring and control Decomposing waste can generate landfill gas (LFG) and noxious liquid (leachate). A professionally administered landfill is checked for potentially explosive gas migration. Ground water quality is also regularly monitored. Methane from landfill LFG is predominantly methane. Currently about 70% escapes into the atmosphere and the rest is either flared off or used for power generation. Of the 66,000 MW total produced by the UK electricity industry in the UK, around 32MW is generated from LFC methane. Modern landfill construction and capping systems will improve this figure.
