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Landfill geosynthetics for abandoned Italian dump

Case Studies | February 7, 2022 | By:

Landfill geosynthetics transform the abandoned dump near Cava De’Tirreni, Italy, into a green oasis in the heart of the Metelliana Valley.

Installing geosynthetics at an Italian landfill
Installing landfill geosynthetics at the dump near Cava De’Tirreni, Italy. Photograph courtesy of Officine Maccaferri S.p.A.

In 2018, a significant environmental recovery and securing plan began for the former municipal landfill for Cava de’ Tirreni, Italy, abandoned for more than twenty years and now fully reintegrated into the surrounding landscape. Maccaferri Inc. significantly contributed to this important environmental requalification project with its landfill geosynthetics.

Just a few kilometers away from the Amalfi Coast—a tourist destination famous all over the world for its natural and cultural heritage—there is the former municipal landfill of Cava de’ Tirreni, which, after a period of activity between the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s, has been closed and abandoned for more than twenty years, becoming an “ecological time bomb” and a danger for the local community. Indeed, lacking an impermeable cover, the landfill began to produce leachate, resulting from the mixture of rainwater and waste, often very toxic and polluting, such as beryllium and thallium.

Several municipal administrations raised the issue, going so far as to place the landfill under sequestration after the waters of the nearby Bonea Stream were found to be polluted. In October 2018, thanks to a European Union grant worth $2.75 million (2.4 million euros), the Campania Region carried out a massive clean-up, environmental restoration and securing project on the area.

Maccaferri was chosen to neutralize a potential threat to the health of people and the surrounding environment with landfill geosynthetics. The planned action had two main purposes: on one hand, decrease the concentration of contaminants in the downstream area, thereby, stemming the phenomenon of rainwater infiltration responsible for the formation of leachate; on the other hand, superficially isolating the body of waste, meaning the so-called “capping.” To achieve the latter, Maccaferri proposed the innovative Geosynthetic Multicomposite: a 3-in-1 solution that combines the functions of separation, drainage, erosion control and reinforcement. This multilayer solution not only drastically reduces installation times and, therefore, CO2 emissions, but also guarantees durability and solidity over time. Maccaferri also covered the base, which used to be a 56 foot (17 m) high reinforced concrete barrier, with Green Terramesh. The crowning was carried out with Polimac gabions with protection and the surrounding part with Reno mattresses, again laid on the capping.

The planned action had two main purposes: on one hand, decrease the concentration of contaminants in the downstream area, thereby, stemming the phenomenon of rainwater infiltration responsible for the formation of leachate; on the other hand, superficially isolating the body of waste, meaning the so-called “capping.” To achieve the latter, Maccaferri proposed the innovative Geosynthetic Multicomposite: a 3-in-1 solution that combines the functions of separation, drainage, erosion control and reinforcement.

The project gained the approval of local authorities, who appreciated how the former landfill, once an unhealthy territory, has become a green area for the benefit of the entire community.


Project highlights

Landfill environmental restoration

Location

Cava de’ Tirreni, Italy

Geosynthetics manufacturer

Officine Maccaferri S.p.A.

Geosynthetics materials

161,889 square feet (15,040 m2) MacLine geosynthetic clay liner

186,485 square feet (17,325 m2) MacDrainTM W

111,945 square feet (10,400 m2) Multicomposite Geosynthetics

9687.52 square feet (900 m2) ParaLinkTM

624 square feet (58 m2) Terramesh System

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