Solid Waste Management
Solid waste management once was commonly thought of as simply "pick up the waste and go dump it in a hole somewhere." Today, nothing could be farther from the truth. When done well solid waste management successfully blerse interests of a large "stakeholder" community together with industrial interests. Solid waste landfills, like hazardous waste landfills, can now be well-engineered structures, designed not to be offensive in any way.They are also designed to not contaminate local drinking water aquifers. Cooperation between the local community and the waste handling industry is a must if society's wastes are to be handled properly, effectively, and economically. Unfortunately, this does not always happen and litigation erupts.
The various stakeholders normally involved with solid waste management include: local officials and decision-makers, industry business executives and entrepreneurs, private refuse collectors and disposal site operators, community, neighborhood, and environmental organizations, regulatory authorities, recycling service providers, secondary materials processors, and end-users. Unfortunately this large "stakeholder" community sometimes has disputes which require skilled technical professionals to help resolve. These disputes may come in a wide number of areas and activities involved in the development and operation of a landfill, including:
Siting and Design of Landfills
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Characterization and evaluation of alternative sites, operations scenarios, and permitting requirements
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Site development plans, operational specifications, and cost comparisons
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Refuse cell location, parameters, sequencing, and liner systems
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Leachate, gas, ground water, and other environmental control systems
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Closure and post-closure planning, monitoring, testing and construction supervision.
