Evaluating Landfill Gas Emissions from Closed or Abandoned Facilities - a PDH Online Course for Engineers, Surveyors and Architects

Evaluating Landfill Gas Emissions from Closed or Abandoned Facilities

Course Outline

This 10 hour course will provide the reader with the procedures and tools for evaluating health and safety impacts of landfill gas. Federal guidelines will be discussed such as the Resource Conservation of Recovery Act (RCRA), The Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA), and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). Case studies will be presented to illustrate the monitoring procedures discussed.

This course includes a multiple-choice quiz at the end, which is designed to enhance the understanding of course materials.

Learning Objective

At the conclusion of this course, the student would have learned the following:

What constitutes a co-disposal landfill;
Percentage of Methane in landfill gas;
How aerobic bacteria contributes to landfill gas;
How rainfall can effect landfill gas levels;
Percentage of carbon in landfill gas;
Typical spacing of gas extraction wells;
Length of time landfill gas produces after landfill closure;
Primary pathways of landfill gas exposure;
Main element in the earth’s atmosphere;
The single largest source of man-made emissions;
The potential contaminants of potential concern found in landfill gas;
Types of soils that offer high resistance to subsurface vapor flow of landfill gases;
Optimum conditions for landfill fires and explosions;
The service life of landfills;
How the pH can affect biological decomposition;
Energy produced by anaerobic decomposition;
The cancer risk for various contaminants of potential concern (COPC);
The cancer risk of Chloroform;
Site-specific factors that effects subsurface vapor migration;
How to determine the soil vapor permeability;
The most commonly used method for monitoring subsurface concentrations;
The average saturated hydraulic conductivity of Sandy clay;
How gaseous emissions can be released from MSW landfills;
How to determine soil classifications;
The definition of the building ventilation rate;
How to determine the air exchange rate for buildings;
The various types of landfill collection systems;
How to determine the equivalent crack radius;
How to determine the flammability of oxygen and methane;
How to determine the optimal well spacing;
The typical cover permeability of clay;
How emissions of gas or particulate matter can effect air pollution problems at superfund co-disposal landfills;
Tests conducted on leachage to determine whether it is a characteristic hazardous wastes;
How gas is released from a MSW landfill site;
The typical concentration of pesticides from MSW landfills;
How landfill gas can effect vegetations;
The typical vapor pressures of inorganic compounds;
The primary landfill gas safety concern;
The frequency of testing surface emissions for entire landfill sites; and
Strengths and weaknesses of various monitoring methods at MSW landfill sites.

Intended Audience and Benefit

This course is intended for superfund remedial project managers, on-scene coordinators, facility owners, geotechnical engineers, environmental engineers, geo-hydrologists, municipal engineers, project managers, and any persons working in civil engineering field or anyone with an interest in Evaluating Landfill Gas Emissions from Closed or Abandoned Facilities.

Course Introduction

Landfills are the final destination for the majority of our solid waste. They can have a service life of well over 20 years. During the life of a landfill changes occur to the solid waste producing landfill gas. Landfill gas is produced by the anaerobic decomposition of biodegradable waste in landfills. The two main gases that are produced are methane, and carbon dioxide. Other constituents of primary concern in landfill gas include mercury, benzene, chloroform, toluene, vinyl chloride, and chlorofluorocarbons.

Course Content

This course will provide the reader with the practical knowledge to evaluated landfill gas emissions from closed or abandoned facilities. Technical information as well as case studies will be discussed.

Evaluating Landfill Gas Emissions from Closed or Abandoned Facilities

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Course Summary

The information presented in this course will provide the reader with the practical knowledge of the Evaluating Landfill Gas Emissions from Closed or Abandoned Facilities.

Using good engineering judgment is always paramount in any situation. Utilizing good judgment and the knowledge gained in this course will aid the reader with the knowledge to successfully evaluate landfill gas emissions.

Related Links

For additional technical information related to this subject, please visit the following websites:

http://www.epa.gov/
http://www.usace.army.mil/
http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/

Quiz

Once you finish studying the above course content, you need to take a quiz to obtain the PDH credits.

DISCLAIMER: The materials contained in the online course are not intended as a representation or warranty on the part of PDH Center or any other person/organization named herein. The materials are for general information only. They are not a substitute for competent professional advice. Application of this information to a specific project should be reviewed by a registered architect and/or professional engineer/surveyor. Anyone making use of the information set forth herein does so at their own risk and assumes any and all resulting liability arising therefrom.