Assessment of GHG Interactions in the Vicinity of the Municipal Waste Landfill Site—Case Study

Abstract

Landfills have been identified as one of the major sources of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and as a contributor to climate change. Landfill facilities exhibit considerable spatial and temporal variability of both methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) rates. The present work aimed to evaluate the spatial distribution of CH4 and CO2 and their δ13C isotopic composition originating from a municipal landfill site, to identify its contribution to the local GHG budget and the potential impact on the air quality of the immediate surroundings in a short-term response to environmental conditions. The objective was met by performing direct measurements of atmospheric CO2 and CH4 at the selected monitoring points on the surface and applying a binary mixing model for the determination of carbon isotopic ratios in the vicinity of the municipal waste landfill site. Air samples were collected and analysed for isotopic composition using flask sampling with a Picarro G2201-I Cavity Ring-Down Spectroscopy (CRDS) technique. Kriging and Inverse distance weighting (IDW) methods were used to evaluate the values at unsampled locations and to map the excess of GHGs emitted from the landfill surface. The large off-site dispersion of methane from the landfill site at a 500 m distance was identified during field measurements using isotopic data. The mean δ13C of the landfill biogas emitted to the surrounded atmosphere was −53.9 ± 2.2‰, which corresponded well to the microbial degradation processes during acetate fermentation in the waste deposits. The calculated isotopic compositions of CO2 (δ13C = −18.64 ± 1.75‰) indicate the domination of biogenic carbon reduction by vegetation surrounding the landfill. Finally, amounts of methane escaping into the air can be limited by the appropriate landfill management practices (faster covers active quarter through separation layer), and CH4 reduction can be achieved by sealing the cover on the leachate tank.

Landfill Emissions of Methane Inferred from Unmanned Aerial Vehicle and Mobile Ground Measurements

“…The quantity of methane emitted by a landfill depends on the amount of organic waste that undergoes anaerobic microbial decomposition [10,11]. Other factors include the distribution and type of landfill cover [12], site-specific design features of the gas collection system, working practices, and daily/seasonal weather, including precipitation and especially barometric pressure [13].…”

Modelling and Calculation of Raw Material Industry

“…In environmental areas, it is important to use new methods in the monitoring of pollutants, which could be a complement to the traditional techniques used to measure and model air pollution [5,6] or methods that are developments or new solutions in the field of purification and removal techniques, including organic compounds and selected metals (Zn (II) and Mn (II) from solutions [7,8] and studies regarding the physicochemical properties of products obtained from used goods/products [9].…”

“…(2) Studies on environmental aspects of activities in key sectors of the modern economy [5][6][7][8][9];…”

“…In the papers that deal with fuels or wastes, laboratory tests were most commonly used-either with the use of standard procedures [4], with the application of typical equipment innovatively used for specific tests [1,2,7] or with the use of dedicated testing facilities, developed or tuned for the investigations that were performed [3,5,6,8]. The analysis of the test results was confirmed using already-known theoretical equations [1,3,4], experimentally identified dependencies (linear and non-linear regression) [1,3], advanced methods of picture analysis [2] and spectral analyses [6,8]. The comparison of developed models of investigated processes was supported with statistical analyses [3,7].…”

“…The comparison of developed models of investigated processes was supported with statistical analyses [3,7]. The spatial distribution of measured parameters in situ was modeled with the use of the Arc-GIS Pro tools [5,6].…”