Systems engineering: the design and operation of municipal solid waste landfills to minimize contamination of groundwater

This paper discusses the need to adopt a systems engineering approach to the design and operation of municipal solid waste landfills. It discusses how the interaction between the different components affects the performance of the entire system, and how, because of this interaction, the performance of the system as a whole is much better than the individual contributions of each of the parts. Issues discussed in this context are: landfill covers and the role that they play; the effect of landfill operations such as the waste placement and leachate recirculation on liner temperature and leachate characteristics; leachate collection and the control of head on the liner; diffusion of contaminants through composite liners; the effect of geomembrane-clay liner interaction on leakage; the significance of wrinkles in a geomembrane; the effect of liner temperature on leakage; possible means of controlling liner temperature; geomembrane protection; the long-term performance of geomembranes and geosynthetic clay liners; and finally the contaminant transport implications of these issues. It is concluded that by taking a systems approach to design, construction and operations we can provide safer containment of waste and long term-environmental protection.