Evapotranspiration (ET) covers rely on the water storage or the soil and evaporation and transpiration of water from the soil to isolate underlying waste. However, there is no approved method for designing them. As part of developing a landfill cover program Edwards Air Force Base, DRI conducted a design sensitivity analysis using the properties of local soils, seasonal transpiration properties of native vegetation and long-term climate records. Over 7200 numerical simulations were run using Monte Carlo modeling techniques to identify combinations of vegetation cover and soil thickness for three local soil types that could be used in successful ET landfill designs.

Project title: Technical Approach for Designing Alternative Landfill Covers at Edwards Air Force Base in California

An auger drill rig used to collect samples beneath of the surface of an ET landfill to examine the degree of biodegradation of waste.