TY - JOUR
T1 - Field investigation of the quality of fresh and aged leachates from selected landfills receiving e-waste in an arid climate
AU - Kiddee, Peeranart
AU - Naidu, Ravi
AU - Wong, Ming H.
AU - Hearn, Laurence
AU - Muller, Jochen F.
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors would like to acknowledge the four landfill site managers in South Australia for field support, and CERAR’s friends and staff for sample collection. The authors also acknowledge financial support from the Cooperative Research Centre for Contamination Assessment and Remediation of the Environment (CRC CARE) , and the Thai Government Science and Technology Scholarship for a fellowship to the first author in support of this study.
PY - 2014/11/1
Y1 - 2014/11/1
N2 - The management of electronic waste (e-waste) is a serious problem worldwide and much of it is landfilled. A survey of four selected landfills in an arid region of South Australia was conducted to determine the proportion of e-waste in municipal waste and the properties of each landfill site. Leachate and groundwater samples were collected upgradient and downgradient of the landfills for analysis of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and 14 metals and metalloids, including Al, As, Ba, Be, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb, Sb, V and Zn. Our data demonstrate that the selected landfills in South Australia continue to receive municipal waste containing in excess of 6%, or 25,000. tonnes per year, of e-waste. The leachates and groundwater collected from the landfills contained significantly elevated concentrations of Pb with the highest concentration in groundwater of 38. μg/l, almost four times higher than the Australian drinking water guideline of 10. μg/l. The presence of PBDEs was detected in both leachate and groundwater samples. Total PBDEs values of 2.13-59.75. ng/l in leachate samples were 10 times higher than in groundwater samples, which recorded a range of 0.41-6.53. ng/l at all sites. Moreover, the concentrations of metals and metalloids in sampled groundwater contained elevated levels of Al, As, Fe, Ni and Pb that exceeded Australian drinking water guideline values. For these reasons potential leaching of these contaminants is of concern and while difficult to attribute elevated contaminant levels to e-waste, we do not recommend continued disposal of e-waste in old landfills that were not originally designed to contain leachates. The survey also revealed temporal variation in the electrical conductivity and concentrations of As, Cd and Pb present in leachates of landfills in arid Mediterranean climates. These results are consistent with the marked variations in rainfall patterns observed for such climates. The solute concentration (EC and other ions including As, Cd and Pb) declines in the leachates during wet winter months (June to September), in contrast to tropical countries where such changes are observed during wet summer months.
AB - The management of electronic waste (e-waste) is a serious problem worldwide and much of it is landfilled. A survey of four selected landfills in an arid region of South Australia was conducted to determine the proportion of e-waste in municipal waste and the properties of each landfill site. Leachate and groundwater samples were collected upgradient and downgradient of the landfills for analysis of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and 14 metals and metalloids, including Al, As, Ba, Be, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb, Sb, V and Zn. Our data demonstrate that the selected landfills in South Australia continue to receive municipal waste containing in excess of 6%, or 25,000. tonnes per year, of e-waste. The leachates and groundwater collected from the landfills contained significantly elevated concentrations of Pb with the highest concentration in groundwater of 38. μg/l, almost four times higher than the Australian drinking water guideline of 10. μg/l. The presence of PBDEs was detected in both leachate and groundwater samples. Total PBDEs values of 2.13-59.75. ng/l in leachate samples were 10 times higher than in groundwater samples, which recorded a range of 0.41-6.53. ng/l at all sites. Moreover, the concentrations of metals and metalloids in sampled groundwater contained elevated levels of Al, As, Fe, Ni and Pb that exceeded Australian drinking water guideline values. For these reasons potential leaching of these contaminants is of concern and while difficult to attribute elevated contaminant levels to e-waste, we do not recommend continued disposal of e-waste in old landfills that were not originally designed to contain leachates. The survey also revealed temporal variation in the electrical conductivity and concentrations of As, Cd and Pb present in leachates of landfills in arid Mediterranean climates. These results are consistent with the marked variations in rainfall patterns observed for such climates. The solute concentration (EC and other ions including As, Cd and Pb) declines in the leachates during wet winter months (June to September), in contrast to tropical countries where such changes are observed during wet summer months.
KW - E-waste
KW - Groundwater
KW - Heavy metals and metalloids
KW - Landfill
KW - Leachate
KW - PBDEs
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84907711421&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.wasman.2014.06.018
DO - 10.1016/j.wasman.2014.06.018
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 25070222
AN - SCOPUS:84907711421
SN - 0956-053X
VL - 34
SP - 2292
EP - 2304
JO - Waste Management
JF - Waste Management
IS - 11
ER -
