Groundwater quality at two landfill sites in Selangor, Malaysia

The groundwater quality in and around two landfills sites in the state of Selangor, Malaysia is studied to evaluate levels of contamination around an unengineered site and an engineered site. The two landfill sites are Ampar Tenang and Bukit Tagar. Data were obtained through site sampling from available boreholes. In addition results from published data and reports of previous works are used for analysis. The data indicate serious groundwater contamination in and around unengineered landfill sites. Analytical data include quality of groundwater, leachate and surface water in which many parameters were above the regulatory limits. Whereas, at the engineered site, contamination was generally below the standards. The findings serve to warn waste management industry stakeholders in Malaysia that for sustainability, unengineered landfills must be closed and cleaned up.