Several articles have run in recent editions of the Finger Lakes Times concerning landfills. In this month’s “Alternate Energy,” I want to discuss landfills, incineration, recycling, energy, education and community responsibility.

America does not seem concerned about anything until it is too late. We just witnessed this with the accident of the cargo ship hitting the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Maryland. Now there are pressing concerns about public safety and national security. Ships have been getting larger and faster every year. Global container shipping has increased 43% from 2011 to 2021. An accident like this seemed inevitable, but only now it is an issue.

We will see the same thing happening with landfills. That is, nothing happens for decades then all of a sudden there is a rise in birth defects and cancer. The tested water will show toxins in the drinking water.

Landfills, we are told, are safe and durable. As an engineer I strongly disagree. The liners, which we are told will permanently contain the contaminates, will eventually fail. In areas where flooding occurs, they fail sooner and with great consequences. This happened at the Payatas landfill in the Philippines in 2000 where a massive waste landslide occurred that killed 200 people after a heavy rain.

Even without natural disasters, these liners do not last forever. Over time all liners eventually distort, become misaligned, crack and tear.

Methane and leachate are two byproducts of landfills. Methane is produced from the decay of organic material and if not trapped, is released to the atmosphere. Some landfill sites burn the methane; others channel it to produce heat and electricity. However, over time water mixes with soluble and insoluble products such as paint, various salts, chemical solvents, etc. and eventually these concentrate at the bottom of the liner.........

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