Leachate treatment at landfill site: the Spillepeng experience

Abstract

The major environmental problem with landfilling of waste is the production of leachate. The amount of the leachate depends on precipitation, run-off and groundwater impact, whereas the concentration of dissolved solutes in the leachate depends on the waste landfilled.

The appropriate treatment of landfill leachate must be investigated for each plant. In principle, the ultimate environmentally critical factors are the resulting concentrations and the availability of contaminants in an aquifer, a surface water system or a wastewater treatment plant into which the leachate is discharged.

With emphasis on the Swedish waste handling company SYSAV:s landfill Spillepeng, north of Malmo, some examples of leachate treatment systems on-site from some Swedish landfills are given in the text as well as strategies on how to fulfil environmental demands on a cost-effective basis. Biological, chemical and physical treatment methods are exemplified.