Dive Brief:
- Landfill mining and reclamation at landfills across the US is gaining momentum as some waste companies make moves to profit from trash buried at the sites.
- Advanced radar may be used to locate resources and uncover materials, and municipalities could benefit from a new revenue stream created by taking advantage of closed landfill sites.
- Setbacks for excavation include sites that leak leachate, house hazardous waste materials, and the sheer variety of landscapes at different landfills are issues facing some potential excavation sites.
Dive Insight:
Cost and risk are the two major issues facing landfill mining companies, prompting researchers to devise ways to make the process easier and more profitable. The recycling industry anticipates rare earth excavation to experience a rapid growth rate considering that current precious metal excavations yield a 12.5% recovery rate.
Mining landfills for new materials is catching on. Metal mining in Maine is underway, and in March 2014, TerRanova offered $1 million to a shuttered landfill in Michigan. The company plans to use the former landfill as an excavation site for recyclables, the first of its kind in the state.
