Landfill Operations and The Impacts of Landfill Closure

Landfill Operations and The Impacts of Landfill Closure NCSWANA - Spring 2017 by Raymond Hoffman, P. E. 1

Preston Contractors For over 70 years Preston Contractors has been a familyowned business, going on 4 generations. We employ over 350 people and performed $100 million in gross receipts last year. 14 Engineers on Staff, 4 Registered P. E. ’s with in-house CADD and GPS surveying; Serving the landfill industry, along with mining and natural gas industries. We have the required skills needed to navigate the toughest projects and terrains, working safely and confidently wherever the job takes us. 2

August 26, 2008 – NC’s MSW Capacity Analysis: An Industry Perspective From 41 to 40 (2015 -2016), back to 41 (2017) with Closures at Orange and Lenoir Counties and New “Greenfield” Sites at Granville County and Randolph County and some approved Expansions; 283 M cyds increased to 398 M cyds; 229 M cyds available thru (14) Landfills with Multi-County Service Areas handling 5. 6 M tons annually or 56%; Exported waste remained steady around 1. 3 M; 9. 96 M tons of MSW disposed in 2015 -2016*; 10. 2 M people =. 98 tpp compared to 1. 34 in 2007; Life of Site permits without Life of Site franchise could impact 4. 4 M tons annually or 44%; Overall state of Solid Waste Capacity in NC looks good with most facilities having 20+ years of airspace remaining. * NCDEQ – FY 2015 -2016 3

The Life Cycle of a Landfill Conceptual – Identify need, Facility designs, Pro-forma, Investment; Implementation – Designs for permitting, permit process, public hearings, local government approval, construction plans; Operational Life – Consume airspace efficiently through optimum designs, well thought-out planning and innovative operational effectiveness, control costs, to maximize profits; Countdown to Closure – Planning for final cap, movement to another facility, closing or revising existing contracts; Closure – Capping the site, preparing for post closure; Post Closure – 30 years; Beyond Post Closure – Custodial Care, 5, 10, 30, ? ? Additional years. 4

The Economy of a Landfill Can be a source of income for the Host Community thru Scale receipts, Host Fees, taxes, leachate disposal, gas sales and other services; Direct and Indirect support jobs/business; Self sustaining vs subsidized thru a general fund, bond payments, taxes…stocks; Capital investments, cell, infrastructure, gas and capping events; Operational expenses, leachate disposal, gas system O&M, labor, equipment maintenance, fuel, materials; Transportation costs; and Post Closure expenses. 5

Host Community Benefits Host Fee - $/ton; Landfill employees; Hotels, restaurants; Machine/mechanic shops; Consultants/Engineers; Environmental monitoring; Disposal option for business and industry; Other contractual obligations – parks, recycling, donations; Fewer illegal dump sites. What happens when the landfill closes? 6

Support Industries for the Landfill Hauling Companies – Local and Long Distance; Heavy Equipment – Yellow Iron; Geosynthetic Manufacturers; Quarries; Waste Water Treatment Facilities; Power Companies; Logging/Timber; Erosion Control Companies; Remediation Contractors; Landscapers/vegetation specialists. What happens when the landfill closes? 7

Why Does the Landfill Need Revenue? Site Development – before waste is received costs; Cell Construction – costs within the lined area; Infrastructure – costs outside the lined area; Gas System – costs associated with the gas system; Capping – costs associated with closure of the lined area; Post Closure – costs that are anticipated during the 30 years of post closure adjusted annually for inflation, new cell construction and/or capping events; Operational Expenses - costs that occur to operate and maintain the facility during the years which waste is being received. Post Closure Care – 30 years ? ? Custodial Care – To Infinity and Beyond* * Buzz Lightyear 8

How Does the Landfill Generate Revenue? Scale Receipts; Municipal Contracts; Special Waste Projects; and Landfill gas sales. LANDFILLS SELL AIRSPACE Sale of Stocks/Investors? Taxes/fees. What happens when the landfill closes? 9

The Importance of Airspace Constructed airspace is the volume available for waste disposal; It is finite, based on the design, permits and physical constraints; It is affected by operational capabilities (i. e. density, proper filling to grade, amount of soil used, recycling efforts); The amount of airspace remaining should be used to determine the cost per ton. What happens when there is no more airspace…the landfill closes? 10

How to Maximize Airspace Improve density; Reduce soil use; Best design; Encourage decomposition; Recycle; and Reclaim. 11

How Does the Landfill Receive Waste Hauling Companies (Internal and External); Transfer Stations; Municipality Haulers; Special Waste Event Haulers; Residents. 12

Transportation Costs – Why Transfer Stations Exist. Localized disposal option for collection trucks; Faster turn time for collection trucks; Fewer trucks needed; Reduces traffic going to, leaving from and on the landfill; Long Haul trucks are more fuel efficient than collection trucks; Fewer landfills are needed; Be prepared to have your TS sited, permitted and constructed before your landfill closes. What happens when the landfill closes? 13

Transportation Example Assume $0. 10/mile/ton; Landfill A receives waste from a 100 mile radius: maximum transportation rate = $10. 00/ton; Landfill B is 200 miles away so the same tons would cost $20. 00/ton in transportation; If the gate rates are the same at Landfill A and B then it would be cheaper, based on transportation to go to Landfill A; Landfill B may lower its’ gate rate to stay competitive for this waste. 14

Municipal Contracts Municipalities bid for waste collection and/or disposal, typically with a 1 -5 year contract; Closer to the landfill facility, lower transportation costs; Landfill needs to have airspace available to meet the contract term; Could you own the disposal capacity for less cost than transporting and disposing somewhere else; Risk vs rewards…if all of the risk is put on the hauler or disposal owner, costs will be higher. 15

People and Waste People want to spend the least amount possible on waste disposal; People will burn waste in a barrel, toxic chemicals released to air, toxic ashes put in the garden; People will throw it alongside the road, in ditches, streams, wherever, just as long as it goes away; People will oppose a landfill because they are dirty or cause pollution; This is not a presentation about Socio-economic issues but some landfills may (and have) close early for this reason. 16

Closing the Landfill 10 years out – Planning for new landfill site, closing and adding a transfer station, allowing 3 rd party to manage…; 5 years out – Implementing aggressive recycling, pushing out low dollar waste, permitting new landfill site…; 2 years out – all cells are constructed, squeezing every cubic yard of airspace from side slopes, preparing contracts for capping events, losing contracts for disposal (if new landfill is not planned); Final year – filling up remaining space, capping and preparing to enter post closure. Last capping event should include sediment basin cleanings, extra stockpile of “repair” soils for berms and cap maintenance, cleaning of leachate lines, sumps, tanks, removal of scales/scale house, insuring site is secured. 17

Extending the Life Aggressive Recycling – thru local ordinances or state law, limit what can be disposed, grants for recycling, ENFORCEMENT, etc. Reducing daily cover soils – stay in compliance but track usage more closely or use approved ADC’s…as the site nears closure, more and more soils will be needed for outside slopes (12” vs 6”) and “sliver fill” operations mean larger working faces…requiring even more soils. Increase density…work with operations on constantly improving density, small increases can generate more airspace. 18

Alternative – Landfill Reclamation Before closure, implement a program of excavating older areas for the purpose of removing soils, inert debris, recyclables and size reduction of bulky materials; Soils will likely give back 30 -50% in airspace; Removing concrete, brick, block, and other inert debris to a C&D facility or for reuse within the liner area could add another 10 -20%; Removing recyclables such as tires, metals, plastics and wood waste could add another 5 -10%; Bulky materials are items that are difficult for a Compactor to break up, but may easily be handled by a specialized grinder; Size reduction of all waste material will allow the decomposition process to work faster, resulting in higher densities and more airspace. 19

In Conclusion Airspace is Limited and should be Maximized; New landfills are difficult to site and permit; Planning for closure should begin early; Reclaiming airspace at existing Sub-D sites, unlined MSWLFs or Orphaned LFs should be a consideration. 20