Landfill Mining

Landfill Mining: Unlocking Sustainable Waste Solutions

Landfill mining and reclamation (LFMR) is an innovative process that excavates and processes waste from landfills to recover valuable materials, reduce environmental impact, and reclaim land for development.

What is Landfill Mining?

Landfill mining involves excavating and sorting waste from active or closed landfills to recover recyclables, combustible materials, and soil while mitigating environmental risks like methane emissions and leachate contamination.  Originating in 1953 with projects like the Hiriya landfill in Tel Aviv, it’s a growing strategy for sustainable waste management.

Key Facts and Statistics About Landfill Mining

Resource Recovery Potential

• Landfills can be treasure troves of high-value materials like aluminium, copper, and rare metals. Some UK landfills have aluminium concentrations exceeding bauxite ore, the primary aluminum source.
• A UK study estimated that copper and aluminium in soil-like landfill layers could be worth over £300 million, with palladium (£90 million) and neodymium (£7 million) adding further value.
• Construction landfills in the U.S. yield wood, scrap metal, and gypsum, which can be reused as fuel or reprocessed materials.

Environmental Benefits

• Landfill mining captures methane, a greenhouse gas 84 times more potent than CO2. In 2020, UK landfills emitted 13.6 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent, with 60% of landfill gas captured for energy production.
• By managing leachate, mining prevents groundwater and soil contamination, reducing risks like eutrophication in water bodies.

Economic and Land Reclamation Opportunities

• Mining reclaims valuable urban land. A Maine project recovered 34,352 metric tons of metals worth $7.42 million and created landfill space valued at $267,000.
• Enhanced landfill mining (ELFM) can offset up to 80% of project costs by recovering recyclables and energy sources.
• The UK’s 20,000+ historic landfills (4,000 licensed since 1974) offer vast potential for resource recovery and land reuse.

Global Scale and Challenges

• Europe has 150,000–500,000 landfills, 90% of which are non-sanitary, posing risks like flammable gas emissions and water pollution.
• High costs (up to 80% of budgets for excavation and sorting) and safety risks (e.g., asbestos, methane explosions) are challenges, but targeting high-value landfills improves viability.

Innovative Projects and Future Outlook

• European initiatives like ETN NEW-MINE and METGROW+ are advancing landfill mining technologies to cut costs and boost sustainability.
• With global waste projected to hit 3.4 billion tonnes by 2050 (a 70% rise from 2016), landfill mining is critical for circular economy goals, especially in Asia and Africa’s uncontrolled waste dumps.

Why Landfill Mining Matters for Sustainability

• Landfill mining transforms waste into opportunities by recovering resources, generating energy, and reclaiming land. It reduces greenhouse gas emissions, prevents pollution, and supports sustainable development.

M&K are dedicated to innovative waste management solutions that drive environmental and economic benefits.

Landfill Mining

• Excavated material from a landfill is presorted/shredded
•  Trommel Screen (TS620T.HD) sizes presorted excavated material
• +200mm fraction transfers to a Picking Station with Air Separator (PS312M)- RDF, Fe, Non Fe are recovered.
• -200mm undersize transfers to Recycling Screens with Flip Flow Deck (RS514T), Air Density Separator (AS150T) & Eddy Current Separators (EC315T)
• 0-20mm recovered.  0-20mm fe recovered
• 20-60mm fe recovered.  20-60 mm non-fe recovered. 20-60mm RDF recovered.
• 60-200mm fe recovered.  60-200 min non-fe recovered. 60-200mm RDF recovered.

M&K can supply full turnkey solution