The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency acknowledges that all landfill liners eventually leak and pollute nearby groundwater. Landfill air emissions are toxic and can increase the risk of cancer. Federal rules governing landfill maintenance and closure are not as stringent as Cell would have us believe. They do not, for instance, require care and monitoring beyond 30 years, even though the waste is chemically and biologically active for longer. Monitoring systems to detect groundwater pollution are inadequate.
Landfills generate odors, dust and blowing trash.
They attract birds, increase truck traffic and decrease property values. When Pennsylvania did a surprise inspection of trash trucks, it found more than 100 violations. Dozens were so serious that the trucks were not allowed back on the road until repairs were made. We bury or burn 155 million tons of garbage a year, but we displace billions of tons of virgin materials to make our products. Air and water pollution, toxic waste, global warming, deforestation, loss of biological diversity, soil erosion and damaged ecosystems are symptoms of our profligate materials production and consumption.