Environmental Pollution with Heavy Metals: Case Study of the Household Waste

Abstract

This study is dedicated to the assessment of the heavy metal pollution of environment through analysis of sources of heavy metals and the measuring their concentrations in leachate and soil near landfills. Main sources of heavy metals in the household waste are identified. The environmental pollution with some heavy metals (Cr, Pb, Cd, Ni) was assessed. Soil contamination by heavy metals near the landfills was analyzed by measuring their concentrations in the soil on different distances from the landfill. The limit exceeding was not observed for any heavy metal. Only cadmium has demonstrated a strong correlation between the distance from the landfill and the concentration. The research also confirms depending on migration of heavy metals on the landfill conditions and on its compliance with requirements. Also, concentrations of the heavy metals are defined in the leachate collected using the landfill-simulating reactors. Content of heavy metals was identified as high. Higher concentrations are found where more organic fraction is present in the waste. There are conditions inside the reactors, especially acidity, which are crucial at the early stages. Further, a significant impact can be caused by unequal distribution of heavy metals in the waste body. Due to accelerated water regime in the reactors, concentrations of the heavy metals in a landfill leachate are predicted up to 50–55 years. Forecast shows multiple (2–18 times) exceeding the allowable concentrations of all heavy metals, even after long-time landfill usage.