Characterization of Landfill Gas Composition at the Fresh Kills Municipal Solid-Waste Landfill

The most common disposal method in the United States for municipal solid waste (MSW) is burial in landfills. Until recently, air emissions from these landfills were not regulated. Under the New Source Performance Standards and Emission Guidelines for MSW landfills, MSW operators are required to determine the nonmethane organic gas generation rate of their landfill through modeling and/or measurements. This paper summarizes speciated nonmethane organic compound (NMOC) measurement data collected during an intensive, short-term field program. Over 250 separate landfill gas samples were collected from emission sources at the Fresh Kills landfill in New York City and analyzed for approximately 150 different analytes. The average total NMOC value for the landfill was 438 ppmv (as hexane) versus the regulatory default value of 4000 ppmv (as hexane). Over 70 individual volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were detected and quantified in the landfill gas samples. The typical gas composition for this landfill was determined as well as estimates of the spatial, temporal, and measurement variability in the gas composition. The data for NMOC show that the gas composition within the landfill is equivalent to the composition of the gas exiting the landfill through passive vents and through the soil cover.