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Many people give little thought to all that office paper and extra plywood rotting away in landfills.
But Dr. Morton Barlaz sees ways to help the environment—and save people money. His research aims to better predict how waste will decompose in bioreactor landfills, a new type of landfill in which waste biodegradation is accelerated by recirculating water through the waste. Figuring out how fast trash decomposes will improve how landfills are designed and operated.
"Anybody that makes a capital investment in anything wants predictability," said Barlaz, a professor of civil and environmental engineering. "And landfills are no different."
The research, conducted with engineers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, recently received funding from the National Science Foundation. The process was competitive, as the NSF received 246 grant proposals and recommended funding only 15. The NC State/Wisconsin group is getting $600,000 for three years.
The research has attracted a broad array of partners, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the National Solid Waste Management Association, and local governments that have agreed to let researchers bury samples in their landfills. Researchers will study the samples, composed of paper, lumber and other materials, to see how they break down.
If the research helps improve waste decomposition, that frees up space for more garbage at existing landfills and reduces the need for new ones. And as garbage breaks down more quickly, it produces more methane gas that can be converted to energy, reducing the need to get energy from other sources.
And since residents pay for landfills through fees or property taxes, making them more efficient carries pocketbook benefits.
"Anything we do to operate these facilities better and understand them better helps us get more energy from waste in the most economical way possible," Barlaz said.
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