Evaluation of the US EPA Recommended Approach to Predicting Air Emissions From Pulp and Paper Industry Landfills, 1998 Environmental Conference Proceedings

Henryk Melcer

Brown and Caldwell

Robert Lang, Sam Vigil

Lang, Vigil and Associates

c. van Maltby

NCASI, Central-Lake States Regional Center

Western Michigan University

There is growing indication that the pulp and paper industry will be required to comply with Clean Air Act (Title V) requirements to estimate emissions of bulk gases and HAPs from landfills. One method of such estimation is through the use of the Landfill Air Emissions Estimation Model (LAEEM), which was developed and calibrated specifically for municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills. The industry is concerned with the applicability of LAEEM because the nature of materials placed in industry landfills is considered to be so different from those in MSW landfills, that emissions will likely be lower than model predictions. This study examined the basis of LAEEM and its calibration, and explored alternative predictive approaches. It was concluded that LAEEM, when defined in terms of the default AP-42 factors, does not accurately represent uncontrolled methane and HAP emissions from industry landfills. It does not account for the attenuating effects of biodegradation and adsorption, nor does it account for the potentially slower migration of landfill gas through a fully saturated landfill zone or the oxidation of methane migrating through landfill covers. With adjusted calibration factors that are based upon field observations, LAEEM may provide more realistic estimates of methane and HAP emissions from industry landfills.