Recycling Articles : What Is A Landfill?

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The lack of space for our rubbish once it leaves our homes is one of the biggest concerns of the government and one of the main reasons for the introduction of the recycling bins they have started delivering to homes throughout the UK.

With billions of tonnes of waste being thrown away every year in the UK it is quickly filling up the landfills, but very few people have even given a thought to where their rubbish goes once it leaves their homes. The landfill is one of the main ways of disposing rubbish in the UK; however they are not bottomless pits.

Put in simple terms the landfill is a huge hole in ground into which our rubbish is tipped and then covered and left to decompose for a period of time, it is one of the oldest forms of waste disposal and is also known as “the dump” and in historical times “the midden”. There are many landfills throughout the country and these are used not only by your local council but also by yourself as a means to dispose of your rubbish.

The majority of landfills are now also branching out into other ways such as having recycling centres, the processing of rubbish and temporary storage facilities. With waste being a complex matter there are many different types of landfills and with the modern technology of today they are far more than just a huge hole dug in the ground which is then covered by dirt.

The landfill will normally be a huge area which is dug out and then filled with a liner or membrane, this process is essential to stop any leakage of toxic substances from the rubbish once it has been covered. Today modern landfills have to meet requirements and the minimum requirement is using one landfill liner in the hole.

The landfill liner consists of a layer of clay which is compacted and has to meet certain requirements when it comes to the thickness. Depending on the materials in the landfill then others may require using an impermeable liner.

All landfills also need a drainage system; this is to let the gases escape that build up during rotting of the material. If the gas was to escape during the process of rotting then this could cause the risk of an explosion, risks to global warming or photochemical smog.

The matter used to recover the landfill once all the processes have been put in place and the hole filled with waste is called the landfill cap and this seals in the rubbish.

As you can see there is a lot that happens to your rubbish once it leaves your home and a lot of hard work and care has to be taken over it, one way you can reduce this and make things easier on the environment is by taking part in recycling.

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