Eleventh Annual Landfill Capacity Report - 1997

Nonhazardous Solid Waste Management And Landfill Capacity: 1997

Introduction

Municipal solid waste is the term used to describe the garbage that's discarded by America's households, stores, offices, factories, restaurants, schools and other institutions. Included in the definition of solid waste are semisolid, liquid or contained gaseous materials generated by industrial, commercial, mining or agricultural operations. Sludges from water supply or waste treatment plants or air pollution control facilities are examples of semisolids.

Whether it's called garbage or solid waste, we Americans generate a lot of it — about 209.7 million tons a year, according to U.S. EPA statistics. That much waste equals the combined weight of the 131 million passenger cars registered in the United States in 1997.

In Illinois, about 12.2 million tons

How much municipal solid waste do Illinoisans generate? In 1997, Illinois landfills accepted nearly 12.2 million net tons of solid waste. We say net because county recycling coordinators claim more than quarter of all wastes were recycled, meaning this portion was not landfilled.

Recycling coordinators place total generated wastes at about 13.3 million tons. But this total does not take recycling into account. What's needed is a higher generated waste total combined with a recycling rate that will yield about 12 million tons of solid waste going to landfills.

Wastes entering and leaving the state are not believed to affect this equation. Of all solid wastes landfilled in Illinois in 1997, 11 percent, or about 1.3 million tons, came from out of state. We know this because Illinois landfills must report these quantities to the Illinois EPA.

However, waste haulers need not report how much Illinois waste they transport to landfills in other states.

Most of it is landfilled

Where does most solid waste go? Into landfills. The U.S. EPA's Characterization of Municipal Solid Waste Management: 1997 Update says that nationwide 55 percent of solid waste was landfilled, 27 percent was recycled or composted and 17 percent was incinerated. However, in Illinois, less than 1 percent of solid waste was incinerated, hence the percentage landfilled was much higher.

Opponents of landfilling worry that facilities will eventually leak, contaminating drinking supplies. Those who design, own or operate landfills claim they are safe because they must meet the most stringent construction and operating standards in history.

Early this decade, the U.S. EPA developed regulations that sought to make landfills as leakproof as current technology can provide. The regulations also pressed owners to demonstrate their financial ability to safely operate a landfill over its typical 20-year lifetime, and to assure the landfill will be properly maintained for at least 30 years following its closure.

In addition to stricter standards, modern landfills come under the scrutiny of federal, state and local authorities, the media and many environmental groups. If problems occur, they are likely to attract much public attention.

A modern sanitary landfill can be likened to an enormous bathtub into which garbage is placed, and from which contaminants cannot escape to pollute air or water.

Safe containment of garbage and its byproducts begins with the landfill liner, which can consist of impermeable plastic or compacted clay, or both.

The liner system must ensure that groundwater in the uppermost aquifer within a specified distance of the landfill will meet U.S. drinking water standards for 24 organic and inorganic constituents.

Controlling garbage juice. . .

Placed in a bed of gravel atop the liner is a network of pipes that collect garbage juice known as leachate, which is pumped out of the landfill for treatment and disposal. Leachate occurs from rainwater and snow melt seeping through the garbage, and from compaction and decomposition of solid wastes. Leak detectors placed beneath the liner warn of any failure of the leachate collection system, enabling prompt repairs to seal leaks.

Groundwater monitoring wells installed around the landfill's perimeter assure the leachate collection system is doing its job. The location and number of wells must be sufficient to determine the background quality of the groundwater.

Twice a year samples are collected and analyzed for 62 indicator pollutants; these samples are compared with previously determined background concentrations. Testing must continue throughout the active life of the landfill and its post-closure care period; this testing cycle can total 50 years or more.

. . . and garbage gas

Provisions of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and the Clean Air Act require landfills to monitor for methane gas atop the landfill and around its perimeter. Large quantities of methane are produced when organic materials in garbage decompose. Venting systems are required to keep this explosive garbage gas from diffusing underground or from escaping through openings in the landfill's surface.

Sometimes the methane is burned or flared at the landfill, but increasingly it is being collected to fuel generators creating electricity for on-site use or to be sold to local utilities. (Some landfills have been known to produce enough electricity to light 5,000 homes for a year.) Of the 69 landfills detailed in this report, 31 are planning, building or currently operating gas-to-energy systems.

Landfills are developed cell by cell

Landfills are divided into sections called cells, which are developed as needed, filled systematically (so much so that specific loads can be located weeks or months later), and covered with earth or other materials to prevent the spread of odors and vermin.

Trucks arriving at a landfill are inspected for prohibited nonhazardous wastes (Illinois bans landfilling of liquid motor oil, whole tires and landscape wastes), and for hazardous wastes. Loads are weighed and details about them are recorded. They are then taken to the currently exposed portion of the active cell, which is known as the working face.

Trucks empty their loads at the working face, where specially modified bulldozers spread and compact the waste, crushing it to eliminate air pockets and squeezing it into the smallest space possible.

Landfills earn revenues by charging haulers for each ton or cubic yard of waste brought to the landfill. Landfills may have a single tipping fee, or several, depending upon the type of waste and how much it can be compacted.

The more waste that can fit in a cell, the more money the landfill can earn. Airy wastes can often be compacted to less than half their transport size; wastes of greater density may be compacted by only a third; and some wastes, broken concrete for example, cannot be compacted at all.

In 1997, 56 Illinois landfills accepted more than 40.3 million cubic yards of solid wastes valued at approximately $372 million. A ranking of these facilities (Appendix C) finds the top 5 landfills received 33 percent of wastes. This unequal distribution of wastes creates a large difference between an average landfill, which would have accepted more than 721,000 cubic yards (about 219,000 tons) of wastes, and a median (middle) landfill, which would have received some 422,000 cubic yards (about 128,000 tons).

About $1 million per acre

Developing a landfill requires enormous investments in land and equipment totaling millions of dollars, plus engineering expenses, fees to state and local governments, taxes, normal operating costs and further millions set aside for post-closure care. One industry rule of thumb says it takes about $1 million an acre to design, build, permit, operate, and conduct post-closure care at a landfill today.

Some of these expenditures become important sources of revenue supporting various solid waste and recycling programs. State law allows local governments to charge landfills a solid waste management fee of $1.27 per ton on wastes landfilled within their borders. Because these fees can be spent only on waste related activities, some counties have built large surpluses, which can buffer the effect of future landfill closings.

Demands for capital and increasing technology requirements are among the reasons for the increasing privatization of the waste industry. Of the 69 landfills profiled in this report, 83 percent are privately owned and 97 percent are privately operated.

Section 4 of the Illinois Solid Waste Management Act requires the Agency to "publish a report regarding the projected disposal capacity available for solid waste in sanitary landfills. . . . Such reports shall present the data on an appropriate regional basis. . . [and] shall include an assessment of the life expectancy of each site."

This legislative mandate explains why the main body of this report is organized by seven Illinois EPA administrative regions, and why landfill capacity and life expectancy are emphasized in nearby tables and charts, and in text, tables, map symbology and landfill specification pages in the regional sections.

The table above shows landfilling statewide dipped 11.8 percent between 1996 to 1997. Landfills in Region Two (Metropolitan Chicago) absorbed nearly half of the state's municipal solid wastes, while disposal there fell by more than 9.5 million cubic yards, or nearly 41.5 percent. In sharp contrast, landfilling in Region Four (East Central Illinois) soared nearly 45.8 percent, or by 2.7 million cubic yards.

The table below compares landfills' remaining capacities in "snapshots" taken Jan. 1, 1997, and Jan. 1, 1998. Total capacity soared nearly 211.2 million cubic yards year to year; 108.5 million cubic yards of that gain is from Region Three.

This table also shows, at least at a cursory level, how regional ups and downs bear on the total capacity picture. One can see the capacity gains in Regions Three and Four is 75 percent of the statewide increase in capacity.

Per capita views alter perspectives

Perhaps even more revealing is the table below, which views wastes disposed and landfill capacities on a per capita basis. This table changes the perspective of Region Two's waste consumption from an exceptional 33 percent to a reasonable fewest cubic yards per capita (nearly one and a half cubic yards below the statewide average). Regions Two and Six (Metro East St. Louis) had landfill capacity per capita which was the lowest in the state; however, this table warns that the regions could run out of space by 2005 and 2006 respectively unless wastes are landfilled elsewhere or new capacity is added, or both.

Just as important, this table reveals that remaining capacities and landfill life expectancies in Illinois are generally good, especially in Regions Three and Five. (Region Five, even after subtracting 11.5 million gate cubic yards of capacity tied up in a court-ordered closure of Springfield's Sangamon Valley Landfill, would still lead the state with 34.9 years of landfill life expectancy.)

The charts below illustrate there is no capacity crisis in Illinois, nor is one likely to occur. They show that while the number of active landfills fell sharply before leveling off in 1994, average landfill capacity has been growing, while quantities of wastes landfilled have remained in a narrow band for the past 10 years.

Still, it's wise to remember, as with investments, past performance is not an indicator of future results.

Capacity increases since Jan. 1, 1998

In a year that brought a 51.3 percent increase in landfill capacity, it is not surprising that 11 of 55 Illinois landfills had more space available on Jan. 1, 1998, than on Jan. 1, 1997. But as we've seen, landfill capacity in Illinois for the most part has grown over the past 10 years, and that growth has come from two sources: expansions of existing facilities and development of new landfills.

Landfill Capacity Is Abundant Despite Dwindling Number of Facilities At the end of each year, Illinois landfills calculate how much waste they can accept in the future. This volume is known as remaining or available capacity, and is expressed in gate cubic yards, meaning waste received at the landfill's gate, before the waste is compacted. One industry rule of thumb says 10 gate cubic yards of waste can be compressed into 5 compacted cubic yards. Obviously, the greater the compaction, the more waste can be buried. Tight Regulations Force Cutbacks ... Active landfills accepting waste each year Pushing Survivors To Build Capacity Available landfill space, millions of gate cubic yards Average Landfill Capacity Grows ... Millions of gate cubic yards While Disposal Rates Stagnate Wastes landfilled, millions of gate cubic yards

New landfills and expansions of existing landfills brought potential capacity of 147.1 million cubic yards; of this total, 28.5 million cubic yards is attributable to expansions at four existing landfills and 118.6 million cubic yards to seven new landfills.

The word potential is emphasized because as you read this only a fraction of total capacity could be considered immediately available for waste disposal. Landfill cells are developed over time, as needed, and as construction seasons allow. Once this potential capacity becomes available, the landfills will report it as certified capacity.

The table below lists potential capacity increases at existing landfills that since Jan. 1, 1998, have received or will soon receive expansion permits from the Agency.

The table at the below provides potential capacity increases offered by new landfills; four of these facilities opened in spring of 1998 and three plan to open in late 1998 and early 1999.

Capacities listed in this table are for design airspace since these facilities did not report certified capacity in gate cubic yards on Jan. 1, 1998. Zion Landfill and Lawrence County Regional Landfill also reported capacity in gate cubic yards (see pgs. R2.28 and R7.6).

Airspace includes all wastes and all daily cover (soil or alternative materials spread atop the wastes at the end of each working day) and the landfill's final clay and topsoil cap.

Closings cut capacity. . .

A total of nine landfills shut their gates from early 1996 through mid-1998. Seven of these facilities closed with little or no available capacity; two, however, did not.

Beecher Development Co. Landfill, in Will County, closed in July 1996; but on Jan. 1, 1998 the facility reported having 1.6 million cubic yards of capacity remaining.

The operating permit of Watts Landfill, in Rock Island County, was revoked by the Illinois Pollution Control Board on Feb. 5, 1998, and the facility ceased accepting wastes on March 20, 1998. Watts may have had as much as 750,000 cubic yards of capacity remaining on Jan. 1, 1998. It appears unlikely the facility will reopen.

So while most landfills attempt to close only after depleting all their available capacity, these recent experiences indicate this is not always so. As we have just seen, two landfills ceased operations, but it appears they contain 2.4 million cubic yards of available capacity.

From mid-1998 through the end of 2000, based on projections reported by the landfills themselves, nine facilities expect to close. These closings, by EPA Region, are:

• Region One — two
• Region Two — five
• Region Three — two

No landfills in Regions Four, Five, Six and Seven expect to close until 2001 or later.

. . . but the capacity glut continues to grow

While it's never safe to predict future events, it is possible to say that projections of capacity losses resulting from on-going waste disposal and premature landfill closures — offset by capacity gains coming from landfill expansions and the opening of new facilities — suggest that by early 1999, available capacity in Illinois could be as high as 750 million to 800 million cubic yards.

Sharp increases in waste disposal, or premature landfill closings, or slowdowns in landfill expansions and openings could lower this projection by many millions of cubic yards.

There currently exists a glut of landfill space that is causing contractions among the waste industry's major players. One of the more surprising examples recently occurred in Fulton County in west central Illinois.

Spoon Ridge Landfill, near Fairview, is owned and operated by a unit of Browning-Ferris Industries Inc. In December 1997, the Illinois EPA granted Spoon Ridge a development permit that could allow it to become the state's largest landfill. Six months later, Browning-Ferris announced plans to temporarily close Spoon Ridge for a period of one to three years as part of a nationwide effort to control costs.

Company officials said they would use this time to develop necessary infrastructure and waste hauling contracts in northeastern Illinois and southeastern Wisconsin. Success in these efforts could lead to the reopening of Spoon Ridge, and its eventual profitability.

Metro Chicago has two-thirds of state's transfer stations

Key to Spoon Ridge's return to business is the continued development of waste transfer stations in Region Two (Chicago Metropolitan) and elsewhere. Of the state's 69 transfer stations active in 1997, 44 are in Region Two, and 34 of these are in Cook County.

In 1997, Region Two's transfer stations handled 6.8 million tons of waste; four million tons of waste was landfilled in the region that year.

Unlike landfills, transfer stations need not report wastes handled to the Illinois EPA; however, as a public service, the Agency surveyed these facilities to determine the level of their waste handling activities.

The role of transfer stations becomes more important every year, especially in Region Two, where the number of active landfills is expected to fall from 15 in 1997, to as few as 12 after the turn of the century. By then the ratio of transfer stations to landfills in the region is likely to grow to 4:1 or more.

In 1997, 69 transfer stations handled 6.8 million tons of trash, or nearly 69 percent of wastes landfilled statewide. As the number of active landfills falls from 56 in 1997 to the mid-40s, or even the upper-30s, over the next decade, the number of transfer stations can be expected to grow, as will the portion of wastes they will handle, up 20 percent from a year ago.

Composting is growing by three percent a year

Landscape wastes were banned from Illinois landfills beginning July 1, 1990. Since then the number of active compost facilities has begun to approach the number of active landfills, and will exceed them in a few years.

As might be expected, composting is most popular in Region Two, where 49 percent of the state's landscape wastes were processed.

Compost facilities report to the Agency each year the quantities of wastes accepted. In 1997, the state's compost facilities processed 323,077 tons of landscape wastes, a three percent gain over 1996's total of 315,071 tons.

Landscape wastes processed in 1997 represent only about one percent of total wastes landfilled in Illinois that year. While this percentage is small, it is important to note that composting kept more than 323,000 tons of wastes out of landfills; and a ton of waste not landfilled is a ton of landfill capacity preserved.

Delegated inspection program

The Illinois EPA has delegated inspection authority to 18 counties and the city of Chicago. This program takes advantage of additional manpower at the local level.

Delegation agreements authorize these agencies to conduct many of the duties that would otherwise have to be performed by the Illinois EPA field office: investigating suspected violations of land pollution laws and reports of open dumping, and inspecting landfills, transfer stations and compost facilities permitted through the Agency's Bureau of Land. Inspections can also include industrial landfills and monofills (private facilities that do not accept municipal solid waste).

Thousands of inspections of pollution control facilities and other sites were completed by delegated agencies during 1997. These efforts at the local level stimulate the regulated community to take all necessary steps to comply with environmental regulations. Also, prompt response by local authorities does much to curtail open dumping.

Illinois Environmental Protection Agency Administrative Regions