Dive Brief:

• The U.S. Fire Administration reports that an average of 8,300 landfill fires burn in the country every year, according to data released in 2001. 
• Todd Thalhamer, a landfill fire expert and civil engineer, said that although landfill fires are not common, they are also “not rare.” More underground fires occur at sites that accept construction and demolition waste than at those that accept household waste. 
• Geology Professor Scott Vetter of Centenary College said that arson also accounts for some landfill fires, and went on to say that another cause of fires is an underground chemical reaction that can happen when oxygen comes in contact with heat generated by decomposing waste.

Dive Insight:

Numerous fires are currently burning at landfills throughout the U.S. The fire at Bridgeton landfill in Missouri has been burring since 2010 and residents remain in constant fear the underground flames will ignite nuclear waste buried at the nearby West Lake landfill. Management at the Harrelson landfill in Shreveport, LA is dealing with fire and smoke on site. The landfill has been ordered by the DEQ to stop all activity on site as a handful of organizations work together to find a way to extinguish the blaze.