Page 370 - Materials Chemistry, Second Edition

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The Sanitary Landfill 341

Revegetated topsoil (6")

Protective material (18−36")

Drainage material (12")

Clay barrier (24")

Gravel layer (6") Clay cover
MSW

Revegetated topsoil (6")

Protective material (18−36")

Sand bedding (4")
Geomembrane
Gravel layer (6") Membrane cover
MSW
FIGURE 10.29 Two different cover types for a sanitary landfill. (From Vesilind et al., Solid Waste
Engineering 1st Ed., 2002. Reproduced with kind permission of Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson Learning:
www. thomsonrights.com.)

if not impossible to correct in such a scenario; however, the impermeability of the clay layer can be
greatly augmented by the installation of a geomembrane cap directly below or above the clay layer.

10.6 POSTCLOSURE

After a landfill cell is closed and the final cover is installed, monitoring and maintenance are nec-
essary to ensure that the landfill remains stable. Subtitle D requires that postclosure care and mon-
itoring be performed for at least 30 years. A postclosure care and monitoring plan is required by the
state regulatory agency and must include (40 CFR 258.61):

● The start and completion dates of the postclosure period
● The monitoring plan description
● The maintenance program description
● The facility’s personnel list of contacts for emergencies
● A description of the end-use plan for the site

Postclosure care activities must include (U.S. EPA, 1994):

● Maintaining the integrity and effectiveness of erosion controls
● Maintaining and operating the leachate collection system
● Maintaining and operating the gas venting system
● Monitoring groundwater for contamination