United States
                   Environmental Protection
                   Agency	
Environmental Monitoring
Systems Laboratory
Las Vegas, NV 89193-3478
                   Research and Development
EPA/600/S4-89/040 May 1990
x°/EPA          Project  Summary

                    Proximity  of  New Jersey
                    Sanitary Landfills  to
                    Wetlands and Deepwater
                    Habitats
                    R. C. Herndon, J. E. Moerlins, V. W. Lambou, and R. L. Gebhard
                     Sanitary landfills can cause con-
                   siderable harm to sensitive ecosys-
                   tems if they are not properly located,
                   designed, and managed. The purpose
                   of these reports is to summarize the
                   proximity of sanitary  landfills in  the
                   state of New Jersey to wetlands and
                   deepwater habitats (I.e., rivers, lakes,
                   streams, bays, etc.); and to present
                   data on individual  landfills.  The
                   source of data used to determine the
                   locations of the sanitary landfills was
                   the  computer data file developed by
                   Development Planning and  Research
                   Associates, Inc. (DPRA) for use by
                   the  U.S. Environmental Protection
                   Agency's Office of Solid Waste in its
                   RCRA Subtitle O  program.  The
                   sanitary landfills were identified on
                   U.S.  Fish  and Wildlife Service's
                   National  Wetlands Inventory maps.
                   The nearness  or proximity  of the
                   sanitary landfills  to  wetlands  and
                   deepwater  habitats was determined
                   by drawing three concentric regions
                   around the point representing  the
                   location of each landfill. The radii of
                   the concentric regions were: 1/4 mite,
                   1/2  mile, and 1 mile.  Data on 73
                   individual  sanitary landfills  in the
                   state of New  Jersey were contained
                   in the DPRA  data file. Data were
                   obtained for  68 of these  landfills
                   relative to their proximity to wetlands
                   and  deepwater habitats. All sanitary
                   landfills in  the state  of New Jersey
                   are  located in  or are  close to either
                   wetlands or deepwater habitats. All
                   are  located close  to  wetlands while
                   more than  half are close to
                   deepwater  habitats. These  facilities
                   have the potential  to adversely affect
sensitive  ecosystems, such as wet-
lands and deepwater habitats, either
through habitat alterations or through
the migration of  contaminants from
sanitary landfills.
  This Project  Summary  was
developed by EPA's Environmental
Monitoring Systems Laboratory, Las
Vegas, NV, to announce key findings
of the research project that is fully
documented in two separate volumes
of the same title  (see Project Report
ordering information at back).

Introduction
  Sanitary  landfills, as typically defined,
are waste  management facilities  regu-
lated under Subtitle D of  the Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).
These facilities are commonly referred to
as municipal waste  landfills, and they  are
primarily  used  to  receive  household
refuse and nonhazardous commercial
waste. However, sanitary  landfills also
receive other types of Subtitle D waste,
such as sewage sludge and industrial
wastes. Sanitary landfills typically receive
some hazardous waste  in the form  of
household  hazardous  waste, and
hazardous waste from  small quantity
generators as defined in 40 CFR Part
261.10 (Definitions). Depending upon  the
definition of a sanitary landfill used by  the
individual states, there are between 6,500
and 9,300  of these  facilities permitted in
the United  States .
  Sanitary   landfills  can  cause
considerable  harm  to  sensitive
ecosystems  if they  are  not properly
located, designed, and managed. These
facilities have the potential to adversely
affect sensitive ecosystems, such  as

-------
wetlands and deepwater  habitats, either
through habitat alterations or through the
migration of contaminants from sanitary
landfills.  In order to  evaluate  the
seriousness  of this  problem, information
is  needed on the nearness of sanitary
landfills to  wetlands and surface water
bodies.  The purpose of this study is to
document  the  proximity  of sanitary
landfills in the  state of New Jersey to
wetlands and deepwater habitats (i.e.,
rivers, lakes, streams, bays, etc.).

Methodology
  The source of data used to determine
the locations of the  sanitary landfills was
the computer data file  developed  by
Development Planning and  Research
Associates, Inc., (DPRA) for use by the
U.S. Environmental  Protection  Agency's
Office of Solid Waste in its RCRA Subtitle
D program. The  DPRA data file includes
information  on  7,683  sanitary landfills,
and 6,849 of these facilities  have  latitude
and  longitude coordinates  in  degrees,
minutes, and seconds  specified  in the
data file. Each set of coordinates  defines
a point  which represents the geographic
location of a sanitary landfill. In addition,
the data file contains  the names  of the
landfills and  data on  the cities or counties
in  which the landfills  reside. Individual
states  are   responsible for permitting
sanitary landfills under  Subtitle  D  of
RCRA,  and, since  DPRA  obtained the
information  for  the  data file from  state
sources, the site location  information
varies in terms of accuracy and the point
chosen  to represent the location of each
facility.
  Wetlands  typically  form part  of  a
continuous  transition zone  between
uplands and open water. Therefore, the
delineation  of   the upper  and  lower
boundaries  in any  wetland definition is
somewhat arbitrary.  There are a number
of definitions of wetlands that have been
developed for use in  classifying  natural
environments or  for  regulatory purposes.
While these  definitions  are not identical,
they are very similar. The selection of a
specific definition for  use in  this study
was  determined by the availability  of
national wetlands and deepwater habitats
geographic data.
  The most  extensive, consistent source
of  wetlands  and deepwater habitats
geographic  data is  the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service's  National  Wetlands
Inventory (NWI).  The NWI has developed
detailed, large-scale  maps   for  a
significant portion of the United  States.
To  date, wetland  maps  have  been
developed for approximately 40 percent
of the contiguous 48 states, 10 percent of
Alaska,  and all of Hawaii. Large-scale
NWI maps typically  are either  1:24,000
scale or 1:63,360 scale U.S.  Geological
Survey quadrangle maps; however, most
are  1:24,000  scale. Wetlands  and
deepwater habitats are delineated on the
NWI maps. The delineation of  wetlands
and  deepwater habitats was  developed
using remote  sensing techniques  and
field investigations. The NWI maps are
developed in  accordance  with  the
National  Map  Accuracy  Standard
(NMAS). The NWI 1:24,000 scale maps
used in  this  study are  accurate,
according to the NMAS, to within 40 feet
of ground measurements.  These maps
were  particularly  useful  for plotting the
location  of sanitary  landfills  and for
determining  the  proximity  of  these
facilities to wetlands and deepwater
habitats.
  The NWI maps  use the definitions and
the classification system for wetlands and
deepwater  habitats  developed  by the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Wetlands
are defined as lands  transitional between
terrestrial and aquatic systems where the
water table is  usually at  or near the
surface, or the land is covered by shallow
water. Deepwater  habitats are defined as
permanently flooded  lands lying  below
the deepwater boundary of wetlands.
  The  U.S. Fish  and Wildlife Service's
classification of wetlands  and deepwater
habitats  is hierarchial in  nature  pro-
ceeding from general to specific. There
are 5 systems, 10 subsystems, and 55
classes. In this study only the "system,"
i.e., the  complex  of  wetlands  and
deepwater habitats that share  the
influence of similar hydrologic,  geomor-
phologic, chemical, or biological factors,
was used for classification purposes.
  In order to link the location  of sanitary
landfills  in  the  DPRA data file to the
appropriate  NWI maps,  we used the
information on the T-70 computer  tape
obtained  from  the   U.S.  Geological
Survey.  The NWI  large-scale maps were
developed  using  U.S.  Geological
Survey's  quadrangle maps as  base
maps. The T-70 computer tape contains
67 fields of information including latitude
and longitude  that  can  be used for
identifying the 1:24,000 scale maps, the
map  names,  and  the   state codes
assigned to the maps. Sanitary landfill
location data on the DPRA  computer file
tape  were matched by  a  computer
program against location data on the U.S.
Geological Survey's T-70 computer  tape
in order to identify the specific maps that
contain sanitary landfills and/or that would
be needed to evaluate the  wetlands and
deepwater habitats that are within 1  mile
of each sanitary landfill. The map nam
obtained from  the  computer match!
were sorted by state and compared w
inventories of available NWI maps.
  Each sanitary landfill included in  tl
study  was located  on  NWI  large-sc<
maps  using  standard  cartograpt
techniques.  Nearness  or  proximity
sanitary landfills to wetlands and  dee
water  habitats was  determined
drawing three concentric regions arou
the point  representing the  location
each landfill. The radii of the concent
regions were: 1/4 mile, 1/2 mile,  and
mile. The occurrence or nonoccurren
of the  wetlands and  deepwater  habi
systems in  each concentric  region v*
then recorded.
  Many sanitary landfills are  typically
the order of  100  acres  in size.  F
example, in the state of Florida about
percent of the active sanitary  landfills ;
between 50 and 150 acres in size, w
the average size  being  110 acres.
landfill  that is 100 acres in size a
uniformly  distributed about its  latituc
longitude  point  designation will  have
radius  of  approximately 1/4 mile ar
therefore,  will approximate  the bounds
of the  first concentric 1/4-mile  radi
region. Undoubtedly, most of  the landf
located  in  a  1/4-mile radius  regi
containing either wetlands  or deepwa
habitats should be considered  to
located  in  wetlands  or  deepwal
habitats. Since landfills vary consideral
in size and shape,  some of  the landf
located in the 1/2-mile radius and  1-m
radius  regions  containing wetlands
deepwater habitats  will  probably also
located  in  wetlands  or  deepwal
habitats. The exact  geographic bound;
of  the landfill is not  the   critic
consideration for  determining  adver
impacts associated with these facilitii
since contaminants can migrate off-site
affect wetlands and deepwater habitats.

Results
  We obtained data on the proximity
68  sanitary  landfills in the state of Ni
Jersey to  wetlands  and  deepwal
habitats. There are 73 sanitary landfills
the DPRA data file  for the state of N
Jersey  and  68 (93 percent)  of  the
facilities have NWI maps available for s
interpretation. As a result, 5 (7 percent)
the 73 sanitary landfills in the  state
New Jersey  are  not   included  in  tl
study.
  Approximately  77  percent  of  t
sanitary landfills are located  in or witl
1/4 mile of wetlands, while 93 and  1
percent are located  in or within 1/2 anc
mile of wetlands, respectively (Figure

-------
 None  of  the landfills are  located  more
 than  a mile from  any type of wetland.
 Most sanitary landfills are  located  either
 in or  are close to Palustrine wetlands
 (approximately  71, 90, and 100  percent
 are located  in or within  1/4,  1/2, and  1
 mile,  respectively,  of  a  Palustrine
 wetland).
  Approximately  21  percent  of the
 sanitary landfills are  located in or  within
 1/4 mile of deepwater habitats, while 27
 and  59  percent are located in or  within
 1/2 and 1  mile of deepwater habitats, res-
 pectively  (Figure 2). Twenty-eight (41
 percent) of the  landfills are located more
 than a mile  from any type of deepwater
 habitat. Most of the  facilities that are
 located in  or are close to  deepwater
 habitats are  in the vicinity  of  Riverine  or
 Lacustrine deepwater habitats (i.e., 31
 percent are located in or within 1 mile of
 a  Riverine  deepwater  habitat  and 21
 percent are located in or within 1 mile of
 a Lacustrine  deepwater habitat).
  Approximately  78  percent  of the
 sanitary landfills are  located  in or  within
 1/4 mile of either wetlands or deepwater
 habitats, while  94  and  100 percent are
 located in or within  1/2 and 1  mile  of
 either  wetlands or deepwater habitats,
 respectively  (Figure  3).  None  of the
 landfills are  located  more  than  a  mile
 from  either wetlands  or  deepwater
 habitats. Most of the sanitary landfills are
 located either in or are close to Palustrine
 or Riverine  habitats  (approximately 71,
 90, and 100 percent are  located  in  or
 within 1/4, 1/2, and 1 mile, respectively, of
 a  Palustrine deepwater  habitat  while
 approximately 10, 13, and 31 percent are
 located in or within  1/4, 1/2, and 1 mile,
 respectively, of a Riverine habitat).
  Coding  procedures used to compile the
 data on the  proximity of waste  sites  to
 wetlands  and  deepwater  habitats are
 given in the  "Data on Individual Landfills"
 report. Appendix B of that report presents
 the data on  the individual landfills in the
 state of New Jersey.

 Conclusions
  All  sanitary landfills included  in the
 state of New Jersey are located either in
 or are close to  wetlands.  From  this, we
conclude  that these  facilities have the
 potential  to  adversely  affect sensitive
ecosystems,  such as  wetlands, either
through habitat  alterations or through the
migration  of  contaminants  from sanitary
landfills. In addition, more than half of the
sanitary landfills  in  the state  of New
Jersey are located either  in  or close  to
deepwater habitats and they  also  have
                                                  71
                       21
                    13
 the potential for adversely affecting these
 sensitive ecosystems.
 Palustrine\
Lacustrine
 Riverine
 Estuarine
 Marine
  All
systems
                                          I
                                          60

                                        Percent

Figure 1.  Proximity of 68 New Jersey sanitary landfills to wetlands.
                          21
 In or within 1 mile

 In or within 112 mile

 In or within 1/4 mile
                                                                    WO
                           13
Estuarine
                       16
                                    31
In or within 1 mile

In or within 1/2 mile

In or within 1/4 mile
                                                      59
  Marine
   All
 systems
                        20
                                           Percent

 Figure 2.  Proximity of 68 New Jersey sanitary landfills to deepwater habitats.
1
1 '
40
\ '
60
1 1 '
80
1
roo

-------
                                                                                  100
                     Palustrine
                    Lacustrine figgg    6
                                 2


                     Riverine
                     Estuarine
                     Marine
                       All
                     systems
                                                   In or within 1 mile

                                                   In or within 1/2 mile

                                                   In or within 114 mile
                                                                                   100
                                                                      78
       I     «     I      '     l^  r     I     i     I     i
      20         40         60         80         /OO
                               Percent
                                                                                           120
                     Figure 3. Proximity of 68 New Jersey sanitary landfills to either closest wetland or deepwater habitat.
The EPA  author, Victor W.  Lambou  (also the EPA Project Officer,  see below), is with Environmental Monitoring Systei
   Laboratory, Las  Vegas,  NV 89193-3478;  R.C. Herndon and J.E. Moerlins are with Florida State University,  Tallahassee,
   32306; and R.L. Gebhard is with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, St. Petersburg, FL 33702
The complete report, consists of two  volumes entitled "Proximity of New Jersey Sanitary Landfills  to Wetlands and Deepwa
   Habitats:"
     "Volume I. Statewide Results" (Order No. PB 90-165 556/AS; Cost $15.00, subject to change).
     "Volume II. Data on Individual Landfills," (Order No.  PB 90-165 564/AS; Cost $15.00, subject to change).
The above reports will be available only from:
        National Technical Information Service
        5285 Port Royal Road
        Springfield, VA22161
        Telephone: 703-487-4650
The EPA Project Officer can be contacted at:
        Environmental Monitoring Systems Laboratory
        U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
        Las Vegas, NV 89193-3478
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Center for Environmental Research
Information
Cincinnati OH 45268
Official Business
Penalty for Private Use $300
EPA/600/S4-89/040

-------