Classification criteria for restoration and post occupation of waste disposal sites

In Brazil, 40.49% [I] of all domestic and public solid waste produced, involves unsuitabledisposal. The dynamism of urban space causes a constant succession of soil uses in mostBrazilian cities. When a waste disposal site is deactivated, its mere abandon may behazardous to the environment and communities around it as a result of leachate percolation.Waste dumping sites deactivation with further use, whichever, exposes the population tocontamination. This paper proposes an assessment system of areas that were used as urbansolid waste disposal sites,. Even if they receive or have received care in terms ofenvironmental protection for some time before their closure, these areas do not normally havedocumented background on the events occurring there. The proposed assessment establishescriteria for classifying urban solid waste fills whose activities are being closed down and forthose that were already closed for a longer period. Indicators of potential environmental andhealth hazards are used, considering volume of the waste landfill and age; groundwater depth,soil permeability, residences proximity, commercial and industrial centres, environmentaltopographic and morphological indicators and the water balance. This paper is the result of atwo-year field study in Paracambi landfill surrounding areas, close to Rio de Janeiro city. Thisstudy included tests of physical characterizations of soil, permeability tests in the field andlaboratory, column tests on distribution and spread of pollutants, physicochemical andchemical soil analyses at various depths. Besides, downstream groundwater and surface waterwere analyzed. The prime purpose was to create a tool to help decide which activities are toreinsert areas used as waste disposal sites in the suitable urban context The result of theassessment will point to different levels of care in relation to the procedures to be adoptedwith regard to its closure and later monitoring.