Garbage Case

Abstract

This is a report about various kinds of dumping grounds and their impact on the environment. The first type to be explored will be the open dump. The term will be defined. Then the environmental affects will be addressed. The next type that we will examine will be early landfills. Different problems associated with this type will be addressed. Along with that, we will include a discussion of leachate, methane, incomplete decomposition, and settling. After that, we will examine modern landfills. Differences between these and early landfills will be explored. Improvements will also be discussed. Finally, a landfill will be chosen to be discussed in regards to innovations being made and methods to reduce its environmental impact. This report will take a trip to South Africa and explore innovations from the Mariannhill Landfill.

It's All Garbage

Call it trash. Call it garbage. Call it junk. All of the things we throw away from our homes or small business are known as Municipal Solid Waste. Landfills do have a place in society. Otherwise, it would just end up in our backyards. We don't want that. However, we need to make sure we dispose of it responsibly. Let's take an examination at some of the different types of dumps and landfills. This way we can get an idea of ways to make the world a better place.

Open Dump

There used to be an open dump near my house. People would take truckloads of trash or old appliances and furniture and just toss them out there. Open dumps are the most common types of disposal sites. Either by federal personnel or facility neighbors and visitors; open dumping occurs with the disposal of unwanted items (Open Dumping: General Discription, 2012). This type of dumping includes practices that can have an adverse effect on health and the environment (2010). Some of these adverse effects include the following:

1. Fire and explosions

2. Toxic gases

3. Injuries and death involving children getting trapped in discarded appliances

4. Contamination of water and soil

5. Decreasing the quality of life and

6. Damage to plants and wildlife (Open Dump: Environmental threats, 2012).

Back in the early days; communities were smaller. It was easier to bury or burn the trash (Hughes, Christy, & Heimlich, 2000). A lot of these early open dumps were abandoned at one time or another. Instead of processing this waste, the trash simply began to decompose and pollute the environment.

Early Landfills

When I was a kid, there was a place on the edge of town where everyone with a pickup truck would drive and toss out their garbage. It was mostly a big hole in the ground where trash went and later, a backhoe would drop some dirt over it. Merriam-Webster defines landfills pretty much the same way I just did. They define it as a system of garbage and trash which is built up by burying it between layers of dirt and earth (Landfill definition, 2012). The first known use of the word landfill dates back to 1903 (2012). Some of the hazards of these early landfills include:

1. Exposure of old garbage

2. Disease

3. Bad odor and

4. Contamination of ground and surface water (Abandoned Landfills, 2012).

Decomposing trash creates methane and leachate. Leachate is a toxic substance that