ABSTRACT
Sanitary sewage treatment generates residues, particularly sludge, whose production is continuous and voluminous. Since there are environmental and economic restrictions for recycling the organic matter present in sewage sludge, co-disposal in sanitary landfills is an interesting low-cost alternative. The effects of adding sewage sludge, on the operation, stability and post-closure use of the landfill, must be accounted for, since its geotechnical and physical properties are very different from those of municipal solid waste. This paper focused on the issues of co-disposal of sewage sludge in sanitary landfills from the technical and environmental standpoints. Co-disposal criteria were selected and then evaluated by experts. The results were ordered according to their level of importance, thus consolidating a group of essential criteria, representative and of practical application, to be considered in decision making about co-disposal: hazardousness, quantitative control, waste/sludge ratio, monitoring routine, qualitative control and geo-environmental monitoring. This set of criteria should also be considered in the design and operation of sanitary landfills with sludge co-disposal, as well as in the elaboration of sustainable public policies for the sector.
Keywords:
solid waste; sludge; biosolids; co-disposal; sanitary landfills; technical criteria
Thumbnail
Thumbnail
