AREA A/B ENGINEERING REPORT - Waste Management

2.1 Overview of Solid Waste Landfill Regulations
Geosyntec Consultants
The USEPA’s Subtitle D regulations ushered in the modern era of solid waste
landfill regulatory oversight, including prescriptive liner and cover systems
(generally, low permeability soil plus geosynthetic membranes), prohibition of
liquid waste disposal (although leachate recirculation is permitted), installation of
leachate collection systems, control of explosive gas migration, monitoring of
groundwater and other media, financial assurance for long-term care, and guaranteed public
input into the permitting process. State permitting programs must, at a minimum, comply with the
provisions of Subtitle D, and most states have developed additional, more stringent requirements
reflecting local conditions.
Moreover, MSW landfills are subject to additional regulation Federally mandated by the Clean
Air Act (CAA), which provides additional standards for control of landfill gas and other emissions,
the Clean Water Act (CWA), which mandates controls to protect water from potential impact due
to activities at the landfill, and the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), which provides standards of
safety for groundwater in the vicinity of the site. These federal standards are supplemented by
state and local regulations controlling the specific location of landfills, their hours of operation, the
kinds of wastes that can be accepted, and other features of local concern.
2.2 Regulatory Obligations though the Life of a Landfill
Under the provisions of Subtitle D, MSW landfills are required by permit to comprehensively
assess the site and all aspects of its operation prior to accepting any waste. A permit applicant
must conduct extensive characterization of the proposed site’s geologic/hydrogeologic and
environmental conditions, develop plans for operation, maintenance, and monitoring, and
implement these plans throughout the operating, closure, and post-closure phases of the landfill’s
life. The primary objective of the required engineering controls, physical siting restrictions, and
ongoing management obligations is to protect human health and the environment now and far into
the future.
The Subtitle D program is based upon:
• Established design and management practices that include good site selection, thorough
understanding of the landfill’s surrounding environment, principles of engineering and
planning, and overlapping systems for waste containment and performance control; and
• Defined post closure care control systems, routine monitoring and response to conditions
that occur, and end-use assessment to allow future use of the property to be consistent
with environmental security and beneficial use of property.
Regulatory oversight by Federal and State agencies through all stages of the landfill life cycle is
intended to ensure that these objectives and performance standards are achieved.
MD10186.doc 27 29 March 2009