PILOT INVESTIGATIONS OF SURFACE PARTS OF THREE CLOSED

LANDFILLS AND FACTORS AFFECTING THEM

JOUKO SAARELA
Finnish Environment Institute, Keskatu 6, Helsinki, FIN, Helsinki, Finland
( e-mail: jouko.saarela@ymparisto.fi)

Abstract. Aftercare of closed sanitary landfills in a major environmental problem. Rehabilitation

of the landfill with vegetation and reducing leachate production are two issues that must be dealt.
For this reason, Finnish Environment Institute has conducted several projects on closed landfills.
This research aims at determining the physical and chemical properties of the soils at three closed
landfills in Helsinki, Finland. Research was conducted to understand the impact by studying the
following properties: Chemical, nutrient metal, gamma and radon analysis of surface soils of three
closed landfills in Helsinki area.
Keywords: landfill research, landfill vegetation and rehabilitation, pilot investigation

1. Introduction
Landfill research is in many ways a new science and, and as such, it has not
yet standardized investigation methods. Therefore, one of the aims of these pilot
investigations was to test the suitability geotechnical, and environmental investigations methods for landfill. Landfills can also contain many kinds of toxic materials.
Therefore toxicity investigations were also conducted at the landfills. Greenbuilding is an important factor in preventing infiltration of precipitation into wastefill.
Tests were conducted on three closed landfills in Helsinki area.
1.1. G EOTECHNICAL INVESTIGATIONS
1.1.1. Drill Tests and Soil Investigations
According to the results, resistance of light multiple use drill tests varied considerably on all landfills at different points and they were classified according to
the drill tests from loose to tight (Tie ja vesirakennushallitus, 1970a). Difficulty
to penetrate wastes, for example, pieces of concrete, made weight-sounding tests
difficult at almost all investigation points. Therefore, light multiple-use-drills were
not suitable for landfill investigations. Characteristics of surface soils determined
from the samples were the following: hydraulic conductivity of surface samples (0
25 cm) at Iso-Huopalahti, Mankkaa and Vuosaari landfills varied 106.0 109.0 m
sec1 , water content 15.386.9%, and dry unit weight 8.616.5 kN m3 .
Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 84: 183192, 2003.
2003 Kluwer Academic Publishers. Printed in the Netherlands.

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Figure 1. Landfills where pilot investigations where conducted.

On the Mankkaa and Vuosaari landfills, the water levels were measured in 1991
from four investigation points once a month. Results were obtained only from two
points. On the Mankkaa landfill on 3 April 1991, the water was highest, and it was
110 cm from the surface of the slope. In other measure-ments, it was 117247 cm
from the surface of the slope. At Vuosaari, the water level was 245 cm from the
surface of the slope. Location of investigations is shown in Figure 1.
1.1.2. Frost Measurements
The frost depths were measured in the winters of 19911992 on the tops and on the
slopes of the Iso-Huopalahti, Mankkaa and Vuosaari landfills. It was found that the
greatest frost depth was on the slope of the Vuosaari landfill and it was 90 cm. On
the Mankkaa landfill the greatest frost depth was 64 cm (top) and in Iso-Huopalahti
it was 52 cm (top). Most of the measurement points had no snow as the wind had
blown it away (Saarela, 1997).
Soveri and Varjo (l977) investigated and reported maximum frost depths from
19551975 on snow-free till areas. In the coastal area of Southern Finland, the
frost depth was 120 cm and the freezing index was between 10 00015 000 hr

C. During this investigation, the freezing index in the winters of 19911992 was
about 9000 hr C. From these results, it can be deduced that the results of this
investigation are much the same as the results of Ettala (l986). According to his
investigations, the frost depth at landfills is, on average, less than in natural areas.

PILOT INVESTIGATIONS OF SURFACE PARTS

185

This is due evidently to the decomposition of organic material, which produces

heat.
It must be noted that the frost depth can vary in different landfills due to the
age of the landfill, type of waste etc., which have effects on the temperature of
the waste. The effect of the temperature of wastes on the frost depth must, if
needed, be measured or calculated, because the new landfill technology aims e.g.
to enlarge, centralize and increase the height of landfills. It can be supposed that the
temperatures of landfills are in future higher which will decrease the frost depth.
2. Greenbuilding and Environmental Investigations
In greenbuilding investigations, the nutrient content of surface soils were investigated by taking samples from the surface parts of the landfills and analyzing their
nutrient content. The purpose of the environmental investigations was to clarify
whether there are any hazardous chemicals in the surface of the landfill.
The investigations were done at the Iso-Huopalahti, Mankkaa and Vuosaari
landfills. All these landfills are old landfills of Helsinki area (about 2030 yr old).
Specific electrical conductivity, pH, nitrate nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium and boric content of samples were analyzed in the nutrient analysis. There were 11 samples from Iso-Huopalahti and 5 from the Mankkaa and
Vuosaari landfills. For boric analysis, 3 samples were taken from each landfill. The
nutrients were analyzed according to the Finnish standards for nutrient analysis of
soil samples for greenbuilding described by Khri et al. (1987).
Radon was analyzed, because it is a common problem in Southern Finland.
High radon contents are toxic for man. High radon contents of landfills prevent
recreational use. Measurements were made from composite samples according to
methods described by Markkanen and Arvela (1992).
Polyaromatic compounds chlorinated phenols and are environmental poisons,
which hinder the after use of landfills. They can be a problem if, for example, a
landfill is taken into active after use and surface soils contain these environmental
poisons. Then, the contaminated soils can be removed. They were measured from
composite samples according to the method described by Keith (1981).
On all landfills, oxygen, methane and hydrogen sulphide measurements were
made with a portable Crowcon triple 84TR measurement device. Temperature measurements in the surface parts of landfills were also conducted with a thermometer
probe.
2.1. N UTRIENT ANALYSIS
The nutrient content of surface soils was investigated in the laboratory from soil
samples from the Iso-Huopalahti, Mankkaa and Vuosaari landfills. Electrical conductivity, acidity, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium and boric
were analyzed.

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TABLE I
Results of nutrient analysis of the Iso-Huopalahti landfill (Viljavuuspalvelu Oy)
Investigation
point

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11

Specific
electrical
conductivity
(S cm1 )

pH

220
110
50
60
310
130
30
870
140
560
190

5.1
6.3
5.7
6.1
5.7
5.8
5.6
6.3
6.7
6.4
7.1

(NO
3 -N)

7.2
19.0
2.8
5.8
18.0
34.0
5.0
38.0
30.0
24.0
2.8

Nutrient content (mg L1 )

Ca

Mg

46.0
28.0
2.5
1.9
70.0
20.0
1.0
24.0
29.0
28.0
540.0

130
240
105
95
580
390
25
170
190
265
140

1850
2650
600
72
2600
1175
200
3950
3750
3700
4000

225
200
100
60
350
90
10
445
300
520
425

Results of the analyses are shown in Table I. Results of the analyses were
compared to the Finnish recommendations on greenbuilding. Recommendations
for nutrient additions for the landfill of Iso-Huopalahti are according those recommendations shown in Table II. It can be seen, for example, that samples need limed
and fertilized peat, mineral soil and dolomite.
Results of boric analysis varied between 100 to 1900 g L1 .
In summary, it is very important to do nutrient analysis in the vegetation and
landscaping of landfills because soils used on the landfills are generally poor in
nutrients and need nutrient additions. Nutrient analyses are presented in this connection only from the Iso-Huopalahti landfill. Also Mankkaa and Vuosaari landfill
needs nutrient additions (Saarela, 1997).
2.2. R ADON EMANATION AND POLYAROMATIC COMPOUNDS
Radon emanation was measured from composite samples from all three landfills.
Results of the measurements are shown in Table III. By comparing the results of
the measurements to typical radon emanation in loose soils in Southern Finland
(Table VI), it is seen that radon emanation was on the same level as that of typical
soils.
Polyaromatic compounds were analyzed from the composite samples. Also chlorinated phenols were analyzed. It was seen that values were low and chlorinated
phenols were not a risk for the after use of landfills in question (Tables V and VI).

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PILOT INVESTIGATIONS OF SURFACE PARTS

TABLE II
Recommended nutrient additions for grass and bush planting for the Iso-Huopalahti landfill
(Viljavuuspalvelu Oy)
Investigation
point

Limed and
fertilized peat

Mineral
soil

Dolomite

Garden
lime

(m3 100 m2 )
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11

Garden
Y-ferti-

Potassium
sulphate

(kg 100 m2 )

70

3
5
5

30
20
30
30
30

3
5
3

5
5
5
5

2
5
5

3
5

1
6

4
5
2

In points 5, 6 and 11 also Oulu saltpeter: 2, 1 and 2 kg 100 m2 , respectively, recommended.

TABLE III
Results of measurements of radon emanation. Natural radionuclides (Steilyturvakeskus)

Landfill

226 Ra

232 Th

40 K

(Bq kg1 )

Em

Radon emanation

(%)

(mBq hr1 kg1 )

Iso-Huopalahti
Mankkaa

38 (6)
30 (6)

35 (7)
37 (6)

490 (5)
670 (5)

8 (26)a
26 (6)b

23 (27)7a
59 (9)b

Vuosaari

47 (6)

46 (6)

820 (5)

15 (13)

53 (14)b

( ) Percentage errors.
a Room dry sample.
b Moisture content 5% (weight).

3. Methane, Hydrogen Sulphide and Oxygen Measurements

Methane, hydrogen sulphide and oxygen were measured from several points of all
three landfills. There was no gas removing systems in the investigation landfills.
The smell of methane was observed in some parts of all landfills and it caused
nausea in researchers. Methane is explosive at an at-mospheric concentration of 5

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TABLE IV
Typical values of radon emanations in loose soils (Steilyturvakeskus)

Natural radionuclides

Typical value in loose soils

in Southern Finland

226 Ra

3080
3080
7001500
20100
40200

232 Th
40 K

Radon emanation, dry sample

Moisture content 5% (weight)

Bq kg1
Bq kg1
Bq kg1
mBq hr1 kg1
mBq hr1 kg1

TABLE V
Results of analysis of clorinated phenols (Ympristntutkimuskeskus)
Landfill

2,4,6-trichlorophenol

2,4,5-trichlorophenol

Pentachlorophenol

Dry content
of sample

Iso-Huopa Lahti
Mankkaa

0.1
0.6

1.0

2.6

60.69
43.57

Vuosaari

0.9

82.66

TABLE VI
Limit values of chlorinated phenols (Ympristministeri,
1994)
Chlorinated phenols

2,4,6-trichlorophenol
2,4,6-trichlorophenol
Penta-clorophenol

Typical value
in soil
(qg kg)

Value for soil

to be classified
as contaminated
(qg kg1 )

2000
2000

10000
25000

400

4000

PILOT INVESTIGATIONS OF SURFACE PARTS

189

Figure 2. Field investigations at the Iso-Huopalahti landfill, investigation lines (a) and height profile
and weight sounding tests on the investigation line (b). Difficult to penetrate wastes, e.g. places of
concrete and other hard material made weight sounding tests difficult in almost all investigation
points.

15%. The methane, oxygen, and hydrogen sulphide contents of the surface layers
of the landfills were measured at several points. The methane content, at many
points, was in the limits of explosive danger (515%) and oxygen content between
1020% of the volume. According to Duel et al. (1986) methane discharging sites

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Figure 3. Weight sounding tests, frost and moisture measurements on the slope of the Iso-Huopalahti
landfill. It was impossible to install groundwater tubes due to the lightness of the multiple-use drill
and the difficulty to penetrate waste materials, e.g. large pieces of concrete and other hard material.

cannot be landscaped without methane removing systems. Also Neumann (l979)

has stated that vegetation will not succeed properly if the level of oxygen in the
soil is lower than 1214%. Hydrogen sulphide was detected in only one point on
the Iso-Huopalahti landfill.
Temperature measurements were also made from several points on the landfills. The purpose of temperature measurement was to measure temperatures where
methane erupted to the surface. In particular high temperatures (max. 46 C) were
measured at such points on the Iso-Huopalahti landfill.
According to Neumann (1979), if the temperature on the landfill is over 25 C,
it is not wise to landscape it. Also, high methane contents disturb the vegetation.
High temperatures in the landfill cause, according to Vainio (1984), extra evapotranspiration, and the concentration of salts and nutrients in the surface, which
causes drying of vegetation.

4. Conclusions
According the results of this investigation the following points must be taken in the
consideration the closing of the landfills:
(1) Closing of landfills needs many kinds of field investigations in order to find its
environmental risks. It was seen that light multiple-use-drills were not suitable
for landfill investigations. This was due to the fact that landfills, in general,
contain waste materials that are difficult to penetrate, for example, pieces of
concrete, which make weight-sounding tests difficult.
(2) From nutrient analysis, it was seen that surface soils on landfills can be poor in
nutrients and they need nutrient additions. It must be taken into consideration

PILOT INVESTIGATIONS OF SURFACE PARTS

(3)

(4)

(5)

(6)

191

in the closing of landfills because good vegetation has great importance in

reducing the infiltration to the wastefill. The reduction of the infiltration can
over 30% of yearly precipitation with good vegetation.
From the water levels, it was seen that the water table can change greatly in
different parts of landfills and it can be far from the surface of the landfills.
However, it was seen the changes of water levels are not so great that they
could cause problems to the development and the use of water balance model
of the landfill (LCAM) (Saarela, 1997).
The frost depths at landfills were average less than in natural areas. This is due
evidently to the decomposition of organic material, which produces heat. This
makes the frost protection easier and cheaper.
Radon emanation was on the same level as typical radon emanation in loose
soils in Southern Finland. Values of chlorinated phenols and polyaromatic
compounds were also low. It was seen they are not an environmental risk for
the health of man in the closing of landfills.
The smell of landfill gas was observed in some parts of all investigation landfills. It, for example, caused nausea in researchers. Landfill gas can also be
harmful for vegetation and afteruse, if methane-removing structures are not
installed. It was seen that methane could be a risk to the vegetation and man
causing also explosion danger.

Results of this research were also used as background information in the developing and testing the Finnish landfill cover approximation model (LCAM) (Saarela,
1997).

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