Environmental diagnosis and planning actions for municipal waste landfills in Estado Lara (Venezuela)

Municipal waste production in Venezuela and the other Latin American and Caribbean countries continues to increase substantially. Given that uncontrolled management of waste in landfills leads to negative environmental impacts, there is a need to undertake an environmental diagnosis of existing facilities in order to analyse the problems they present and take the necessary measures for reducing adverse effects. The objective of this paper is to study the possibility of applying an environmental diagnosis methodology developed by the University of Granada in order to quantify the environmental impact of urban waste landfills. Seven deposit points located in Estado Lara (Venezuela) were studied. Some modifications in the methodology were introduced to take into account urban waste characteristics and the legal framework in Venezuela. Application of the methodology obtained a series of environmental indexes, making it possible to quantify the impact of the deposit points on the following environmental elements: surface water, groundwater, atmosphere, soil and human health. The indexes were denominated as follows: Environmental Landfill Interaction Index; Environmental Risk Index; Environmental Value and Probability of Contamination. Analysis of results showed significant operation and design problems in all the landfills. The study also made it possible to compile a catalogue of all the deposit points and draw up a list of priorities for action. In the case of Pavía, a Conditioning Plan is required to improve operation and design. In the remaining six deposit points, each index needs to be studied carefully to determine if a Conditioning Plan is sufficient, or if a Sealing and Closing Plan is required owing to the unsuitable location of the deposit points.