Discuss the benefits and environmental disadvantages of modern-day landfills in the United States

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

In contrast to open landfills, modern-day sanitary landfills are lined and covered to prevent waste from contaminating the environment and threatening public health. They are regulated by state or local governments and must meet federal standards. U.S. regulations specify that landfills must be located away from wetlands and earthquake-prone faults, and be 20 feet above the water table. The bottom and sides must be lined with heavy plastic and clay to prevent aquifer contamination. Leachate must be collected in pipes, treated, and monitored. Anaerobic bacteria that decompose landfill waste produce methane, which can be captured and used as an energy source. If this landfill gas is not captured, however, it can contribute to smog and global climate change. It also can explode. Many experts believe leachate escapes from landfills due to liner breakage. The dry state of landfills precludes rapid waste decay because decomposers thrive in wet conditions. Paper has been found to survive intact for decades. It has become increasingly difficult to find areas to locate new landfills. Most communities do not want large landfills in their midst for aesthetic reasons and for fear of potential health risks. In North America, as a result of the NIMBY syndrome, landfills are rarely sited in wealthy, educated, and politically powerful neighborhoods, but instead are disproportionately sited in poor and minority communities. Besides the obvious injustice of this pattern, an uneven distribution of landfills decreases efficiency, requiring waste shipments over long distances.