Recovery and Use of Landfill Gas in Adelaide, South Australia

ConclusionThe indications from the research conducted for this report show that availablelandfill gas from existing resources is grossly under utilised in Adelaide. This islargely due to lack of commitment by local and state governments to providelegislative or financial incentives. Apart from kerbside recycling there have been fewchanges in waste management practices for many years. Public opposition based onenvironmental concerns inhibit the establishment of new landfill sites and gasutilisation schemes. Most people accept the necessity for landfill sites, as long as theyare not in their own backyard. One such example was the rejection of a proposedlandfill site at Highbury due to community action (Leue 1997, p.6).Initiatives such as separating all waste prior to disposal can produce a higher methaneconcentration, making landfill gas more commercially viable. Increasing wastedisposal charges would help offset the cost of sorting, and reduce the total volume ofmaterial discarded as material reuse becomes more economical. The technology isavailable, and in many instances has been implemented for controlling and exploitinglandfill gas. What is needed are more stringent and definitive regulations that wouldpromote further investment in this area. Greater awareness of the problems associatedwith the ever increasing amount of landfill, and a proactive approach by the wasteindustry to effectively manage landfill sites can result in positive action in the future.ReferencesCampbell, M.1997, 'Adelaide's Waste Solutions for the Future 1 Environment SA,vol.6, no.1, p.19.Department of Environment, 1997, Waste: Methane capture and use quick reftrenceguide, Environment Protection Group, Canberra.Falzon, J. 1997, 'Landfill gas: an Australian perspective ' , Proceedings from the sixthInternational Landfill Symposium held 1997, Sardinia.Falzon, J. ~998, 'Landfill gas Developments ' , Proceedings from the fourth NationalHazardous & Solid Waste Convention held April 1998, Brisbane.Haylock, L. 1996, 1 Landfill Gas: from liability to asset', Environment SA, vol.5, no.3,p.9.Jarre, P., Mezzalama, R. & Luridiana, A. 1997, Lessons to be learned from a FatalGas Explosion, pp.497-506.Leue, C., 1997, 'Waste of a Community', Environment SA, vol.6, no.1, p.6.Modular Landfill Gas Power Generation System. Pamphlet, Energy DevelopmentsLtd., South Yarra, Victoria.NGGIC (National Greenhouse Gas Inventory Council) 1996, 1988 to 1994 Summaryand Analysis of Trends, AGPS, Canberra.