The Leachate Expert Website Landfill leachate management information from IPPTS Associates. Leachate Treatment Plant Design consultants.
First of all when asked the question, “How Do You Treat Leachate?”, we would like to make a distinction between true treatment which involves converting environmentally damaging substances to less, or non-toxic, ones, and simply concentrating the contaminants from the water in leachate to give a volume reduction. In the water industry both are known as […]
Anaerobic digestion is becoming increasingly popular in this age of high energy prices, and many more people are realising that whereas aerobic treatment systems consume large amounts of expensive energy, anaerobic digestion is a process which does the opposite. In fact it produces a net energy output. It is not surprising therefore, that many […]
In recent years there has been a trend toward MSW leachates from Sanitary Landfills throughout the world becoming more similar, however, as Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) is increasingly implemented and more Mechnanically Sorted Organic Residue (MSOR) [also known as “residual waste”] is produced in the supply area for a landfill, so the leachate quality of […]
This article is to make it easy to have success in selecting the best pipework material for leachate collection systems.
Popular pump types used for leachate extraction and pumping systems is the submersible centrifugal (vortex) type pump, and in particular in the UK the FLYGHT pumps model range.
WRc, has reported on field trials in Britain inquiring into the utilisation of short rotation coppice (SRC) willow to treat leachate. The method is in use at several UK landfills where it is reported to be a low cost sustainable meathod of leachate
“The person who walks with his/her eyes on the stars, is susceptible to the puddles in the road.” We all would like to follow our stars, but at times we need to do some “puddle watching” too! Sometimes we need to know what not to do, what things and actions to avoid, and why…
If you have a problem with a substance found in leachate, we are here to help you! Our fact files, which are based on publicly published UK government research, are unique. You can save huge amounts of time hunting down this information which is otherwise spread very widely in published papers in libraries and on research databases, and is only partially accessible from the web.
Landfill leachate invariably contains a host of different substances in addition to the major substances present (COD, BOD, Suspended solids, Metals in solution, Salinity, Ammoniacal nitrogen etc), which although only dissolved in tiny quantities (parts per million (ppm) and parts per billion (ppb)) still may represent a potential hazard to the environment and public health due to their extreme toxicity. To make a distinction between much higher concentrations of the main contaminants which are present in parts per thousand and more, and these lower concentration but much more toxic substances, the term “Trace Contaminants” is applied.
National and international standards have been set for the maximum permissible concentrations of many of these toxic (or “dangerous”) substances in drinking water, and under the EU Groundwater Directive no such substances are in principle permitted to be discharged to groundwater. In the UK these substances are often described as List 1 Substances, however since the creation of that list many more substances and species of contaminants have beeen identified which can now be analysed, and routinely reported upon within the description of “Dangerous Substances” as now applied by the environment Agency (EA).
The first step is to analyse for them. Contact your water quality analytical laboratory and request a list of the subtsances they analyse when asked to complete what are variously called “List1”, “Dangerous Substances”, “or Comprehensive Prescribed List” analysis reports. Before you head off to the landfill to collect the necessary samples you will also need to await a package of special bottles which te analytical laboratory staff will prepare and send to you. Some of the se bottles wil include fixitive chemicals designed to prevent decay of some substances while en-route to the analytical test laboratory.
Most leachates, especially those from older landfills, will show the presence of some of these chemicals. The next step is to decide whether they present a real hazard when the discharge route is taken into account. To do that we are writing and publishing a series of Leachate Contaminant Fact Files, each one of which will discuss the nature of a hazardous substance, or species of substances, and identify research papers written on the contaminant, to assit the reader in deciding whether the presence of the substance is significant and assist them in the decision either to treat the leachate to remove the susbtance, or to make a scientifically based case to the regulatory body or waste water treatment plant operator that negligable risk exists from the dangerous chemical at the concentration seen during water quality analysis.
Our first Leachate Contaminant Fact Files are Now Available. For more information, and purchase for immediate download, please click on the linked text below:
When designing any leachate management system the assessment of the most economic method for leachate treatment and disposal is heavily dependent upon the flow rate and duration of flow. A high capital cost option such as on site leachate treatment will be worthwhile, but only if the total volume the plant treats daily is sustained […]
A major problem arising from landfills is the discharge of leachate which is formed by water passing through the tip and thus becoming contaminated with various organic and inorganic pollutants. The subsequent movement of the leachate into the surrounding soil, ground water or surface water could lead to severe pollution problems. The mechanisms by which […]
New!
Leachate ContaminantFact Files Nos. 1 & 2 are now available.
Contaminants Found in Leachate: No. 1 - POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCBs)
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