United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
National Risk Management
Research Laboratory
Research Triangle Park, NC 27711
Research and Development
EPA/600/SR-98/040
April 1998
Project Summary
Guidance for Landfilling Waste in
Economically Developing
Countries
G.M. Savage, L.F. Diaz, C.G. Golueke, and Charles Martone
The report offers guidance on all as-
pects of the planning, design, and imple-
mentation of landfills in economically
developing countries. The intended au-
dience includes municipal officials, solid
waste managers, engineers, and plan-
ners.
The report's 18 chapters include criti-
cal technical areas such as siting, de-
sign, and operation of landfills. Equally
important non-technical aspects such
as social, economic, and institutional
topics relevant to developing landfills in
economically developing countries also
are discussed.
The guiding principle of the report is
the application of acceptable landfill
practices within the conditions and
availability of resources prevailing in
both large urban cities and small com-
munities in economically developing
countries.
This Project Summary was developed
by EPA's National Risk Management Re-
search Laboratory's Air Pollution Pre-
vention and Control Division, Research
Triangle Park, NC, to announce key find-
ings of the research project that is fully
documented in a separate report of the
same title (see Project Report ordering
information at back).
Preface
The final draft of the report was pre-
pared through the cooperation of several
organizations and individuals. It is based
on a report prepared several years ago
by CalRecovery, Inc., under contract to
The World Bank. This report contains sub-
stantial modifications to chapters of the
former report: it covers additional topics
and reflects the content of course materials
used by the International Solid Waste
Association's (ISWA's) Working Group on
Sanitary Landfilling (WGSL) in economi-
cally developing countries between 1993
and 1996 on the topic, Landfilling of
Wastes. It is expected that the report will
be evolving, benefiting from modifications
of content based on the results of courses
given throughout the world.
Funding for the report was provided
through the Environmental Technology
Initiative and administered by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA),
as part of its U.S. Technology for Interna-
tional Environmental Solutions (U.S.
TIES). U.S. TIES is an innovative EPA
program designed to promote the appli-
cation of U.S. technology in solving envi-
ronmental problems worldwide. Additionally,
in-kind services were provided by mem-
bers of ISWA's WGSL and CalRecovery,
Inc.
The draft report was peer reviewed by
WGSL members Robert Ham (chairman),
David J. V. Campbell, Isabelle Paris, and
Rainer Stegmann. Additionally, it was re-
viewed by Susan A. Thorneloe, Allen J.
Geswein, Paul F. Cassidy, and David A.
Carson of the EPA; Lars M. Johannessen
and Carl R. Bartone of the World Bank;
and Forbes R. McDougall of Procter &
Gamble.
Although the report was funded by the
EPA, its contents do not represent EPA
regulations and policies. Rather, the con-
tents reflect the authors' analyses and
judgements concerning appropriate meth-
ods, procedures, and topics relevant to
land disposal of solid wastes in economi-
cally developing countries. The conditions
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relevant to solid waste management in eco-
nomically developing countries are substan-
tially different than those of industrialized
countries.
CalRecovery, Inc. prepared most of the
report, under subcontract to Roy F.
Weston, Inc. Weston contributed portions
of the document, including topics related
to design, operation, and environmental
monitoring.
Introduction
At present, the adoption and practice
of landfilling in many municipalities in
economically developing countries are
impeded by the lack of reliable and prac-
tical information such as that compiled in
a guidance document specific to economi-
cally developing countries. This report
makes every effort to fulfill this need by
including, under one cover, explanations
and descriptions of technologies and pro-
cedures proven appropriate in practice.
Within the report are summary explana-
tions of underlying principles, as well as
clear and concise guidance for putting
the technologies into practice.
Currently, the few available documents
on landfilling in many economically de-
veloping countries are based on tech-
nologies and practices suited only to
conditions in, and to the requirements of,
industrialized nations. However, technolo-
gies and practices suited to industrialized
nations rarely can be successfully trans-
ferred to economically developing coun-
tries without having been adapted to local
conditions. The report presents methods
for planning and implementing landfills.
The methods that are discussed span the
spectrum of landfill practice from complex
engineered systems (designed for virtu-
ally complete control and containment of
impacts on human health and safety) to
less complex systems that can be afforded
particularly by small communities in eco-
nomically developing countries while pro-
moting acceptable control of the impacts
of land disposal of wastes.
The report presents suggestions for re-
view and evaluation, often based on best
engineering judgement. The guidance is
intended to be of sufficient breadth and
generality to cover the wide range of con-
ditions (technical, regulatory, social, eco-
nomic, and institutional) that exist in
economically developing countries, and
not necessarily to provide rigid rules to
be applied in all circumstances. While
the report is written primarily for engi-
neers, planners, and operating staff, it
should also be useful to management
and high-level public officials for the pur-
poses of planning and budgeting. Municipal
officials, by virtue of a review of this report,
can gain an awareness of the issues and
complexities of landfilling and the impor-
tance of these facilities to managing solid
waste in a manner that protects the public
and the environment. The report will assist
users in arriving at decisions in a logical,
well-defined, and well-documented manner.
Tables, sketches, and drawings are used
liberally in order to convey important con-
cepts to the reader. Since this is a guid-
ance document (not an engineering design
document), comprehensive and detailed en-
gineering design and analysis are used only
where they are the only manner of convey-
ing an important concept. References are
cited in each chapter, and a list of other
pertinent publications is included at the end
of the report in an appendix.
The Guidance Document
The report discusses, in 18 chapters,
the principal aspects of planning, con-
structing, and operating a landfill. The
emphasis is on conditions, technologies,
and practices that exist in economically
developing countries. However, the cov-
erage is sufficiently broad to accommo-
date the levels of industrialization found
in the metropolitan areas of economically
developing countries. The range of con-
ditions covered in this report will provide
for minimum acceptable disposal stan-
dards. As urban income grows and cities
urbanize, operational capacity and bud-
gets of sanitation departments may in-
crease sufficiently to permit the imposition
of more stringent design and operating
standards on waste disposal.
The report begins with an introduction
which establishes the need for such a
report and discusses the report's objec-
tives and scope. The fundamental prin-
ciples of landfilling are presented in Chapter
2, including definitions of wastes gener-
ated, diverted, and disposed of. Brief gen-
eral discussions of the methods of landfilling,
closure of a dump, and the role of scaven-
gers also are presented. Chapter 3 indi-
cates that any strategy associated with solid
waste management cannot be implemented
without the support of a legislative frame-
work. As such, the chapter provides brief
descriptions of either current or draft legis-
lation for some countries. The discussions
are not intended to cover all countries, but
are meant to be only examples of the sta-
tus of legislation associated with solid waste
management in both industrialized and eco-
nomically developing countries.
Waste characterization is covered in
Chapter 4. The chapter provides the ratio-
nale for having a good understanding of the
types, quantity, and characteristics of the
residues to be taken to landfills. In addition,
the chapter discusses acceptable and un-
acceptable wastes as well as special
wastes. General guidelines are provided
for the identification of wastes representing
potential risks and hazards when received
at landfills. The material includes discus-
sions of other wastes (e.g., industrial, vola-
tile and flammable, bulky and construction
and demolition debris, animal manure, and
animal carcasses). General methodologies
are provided for determining the quantity,
composition, and other properties of the
residues (e.g., moisture content and bulk
density).
The report covers the impacts of waste
diversion on landfills in Chapter 5. Waste
diversion programs (i.e., programs that
reduce the quantities and types of materi-
als discarded for final disposal) play im-
portant roles in modern solid waste
management strategies. In the chapter,
examples are provided of the composi-
tion of various types of wastes as well as
of the impact of different levels of diver-
sion on the concentration of lead enter-
ing a landfill. Finally, an example is provided
of the estimation of landfill gas production
based on the ultimate analysis of solid
waste.
Chapter 6 discusses both non-geologi-
cal and geological aspects of selecting a
site for landfilling. The non-geological
aspects include definition of need, types
of wastes to be accepted, environmental
assessment, and public participation. The
geological aspects deal with types of rock,
climate, hydrology of the area, risks of
water contamination, and a procedure for
conducting a geological/hydrogeological
study. At the end of the chapter, a pro-
posed classification system for site selec-
tion is presented.
Chapter 7 presents an overview and
discussion of the various support facili-
ties, or infrastructure, that should be con-
sidered during the planning of a landfill
operation. Infrastructure includes access
roads, drainage, scales, utilities, fencing,
and other support facilities.
All important aspects associated with
the design and construction of a landfill
are discussed in Chapter 8. The topics
include general design criteria, types of
landfill, contouring, covers, leachate and
gas management, closure, and post-clo-
sure.
The construction and operation of a landfill
require the use of various types of equip-
ment. Chapter 9 discusses spare equip-
ment, multi-purpose equipment, and
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maintenance and repair of equipment. In
addition, the report reflects the reality that
the availability of equipment may be limited
in many cases and may have to be bor-
rowed in order to build and operate a land-
fill.
Chapter 10 deals with the operation of
a landfill. The chapter is divided into three
parts: general procedures, specific op-
erational procedures, and performance
monitoring. The chapter also discusses
methods and equipment for monitoring
the environmental impacts of a landfill.
The various processes that take place
within a landfill are covered in Chapter
11, including physical, chemical, and bio-
logical. In addition, discussions are pro-
vided on in-place density and settlement.
Leachate formation and water balance
receive considerable attention in Chapter
12. Specifically, the chapter provides a
procedure for performing a water balance.
In addition, Chapter 12 covers leachate
migration and the characteristics of
leachate.
The chapter on leachate formation is
rationally followed by one covering
leachate collection and management sys-
tems (Chapter 13). The chapter also cov-
ers a variety of methods for treating the
leachate, such as evaporation and recircu-
lation.
Chapter 14 covers the key aspects as-
sociated with the extraction and utilization
of landfill gas, including gas production and
quality (characteristics), safety aspects,
design of extraction systems, and use of
the gas. A brief description of the number
and type of landfill gas projects throughout
the world is provided.
Several aspects associated with re-
source recovery and utilization are pre-
sented in Chapter 15. The discussion
addresses both manual and mechanical
recovery of secondary materials and in-
cludes a comprehensive analysis of scav-
enging.
Chapter 16 covers an important non-
technical aspect of landfill operation,
management and record keeping. The
chapter discusses management respon-
sibilities, performance monitoring, and en-
vironmental monitoring.
Closure, post-closure, and corrective
action are discussed in Chapter 17. Spe-
cifically, the chapter discusses the pro-
cesses for preparing closure and
post-closure plans, costs associated with
closure and post-closure, issues associ-
ated with using the site upon completion
of landfilling activities, closure of open
dump sites, and landfill mining and recla-
mation.
The final chapter (Chapter 18) discusses
economic considerations associated with
landfilling. Topics presented in the chapter
include potential methods for cost reduc-
tion, capital and operating costs (including
sample worksheets for estimating landfill
costs), and costs associated with equip-
ment.
Each chapter is accompanied by refer-
ences. In addition, for readers interested
in obtaining more information than that
offered in the report, references are pro-
vided in an appendix.
Acknowledgments
A number of institutions and individu-
als made substantial contributions to this
report; it would be difficult to list each
contributor. Among the institutions that
contributed to the preparation of the re-
port, three stand out: EPA, ISWA (in par-
ticular the Working Group on Sanitary
Landfilling), and The World Bank. Indi-
viduals contributing to the review of the
report include Susan A. Thorneloe, Allen
Geswein, Paul Cassidy, and David
Carson (EPA), and David J. V. Campbell,
Isabelle Paris, and Rainer Stegmann
(WGSL). In addition, the authors are in-
debted to Professor Robert K. Ham of the
University of Wisconsin, who spent count-
less hours reviewing the report.
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G.M. Savage, L.F. Diaz, and C.G. Golueke are with CalRecovery, Inc.,
Hercules, CA 94547; and Charles Martone is with Roy F. Weston, Inc.,
Concord, NH 03301.
Susan A. Thorneloe is the EPA Project Officer (see below).
The complete report, entitled "Guidance for Landfilling Waste in Economically
Developing Countries,"(OrderNo. PB98-142102; Cost: $67.00, subjectto
change) 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:
Air Pollution Prevention and Control Division
National Risk Management Research Laboratory
U. S. Environmental Protection Agency
Research Triangle Park, NC 27711
United States
Environmental Protection Agency
CenterforEnvironmental Research Information
Cincinnati, OH 45268
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