The largest garbage dumps in the world. Electronics dump in the capital of Ghana The largest technology dumps in the world

Humanity produces millions of tons of waste every year. 25% goes for recycling. The rest of the garbage is dumped in landfills. Some have been around for decades. Vast areas are covered with rotting remains of human activity. The planet is turning into a big dump.

Countries allocate tens of hectares of space for storing industrial and household waste. Over the period of its existence, mountains of waste have grown.The largest landfill in the world Gyre is located in the North Pacific Ocean. The formation of the island from garbage (BTMP - the Great Pacific Garbage Patch) began in the 50s of the last century with the development of the plastic industry. Holds more than 3.5 million tons. The area occupies 600 thousand hectares. Spiral undercurrents keep it in place.

An environmental disaster threatens the Hawaiian Islands. Plastic waste is found in close proximity to the shores. By poisoning the water during the decomposition process, they destroy the inhabitants of the ocean.

The territories of large landfills are comparable to small settlements.

• Hong Kong, as a developed country, produces 14 thousand tons of waste per day. 110 hectares were given to West New Territories.
• Nigerian Lagos. The city and the garbage dump became one, size 300 hectares. The height of the piles is 80 m. 66,000,000 tons of electronic waste from Europe. 25% is toxic waste (mercury, lead, cadmium) that is not recycled. They decompose under the sun, poisoning the air, soil, and people.
• The American city of Las Vegas is adjacent to the Apex Regional training ground; its area is 890 hectares. The plant processes 9,000 tons of waste into electricity daily. It's enough for 10,000 homes in southern Nevada. Here they produce 17% of methane from the total production in the country.
• The Chinese Laogang landfill near Shanghai, measuring 336 hectares, receives 300,000 tons per month. The mountains reach 20 m in height. Provides 100 thousand homes with electricity. The enterprise produces 102 MW.
• Indian garbage depot New Delhi. 5 objects in 202 hectares surround the city with heaps 40 m high. 20% of the methane in the country is produced from waste.

Waste takes up huge areas of usable territory. They are rapidly accumulating thanks to the developed industry of states.

There are non-standard polygons:

• In the US state of Arizona, 10 square meters. km. occupies an airplane graveyard. Over 4,000 pieces of equipment are destroyed by exposure to the sun.
• In the southwestern Bolivian desert, 8,000 trains are rusting.
• The Mauritanian port of Nouadhibou is the final destination of 300 ships from Europe and Africa.
• The English town of Newacre is famous for its dumping of red telephone boxes. Some are sold as exhibits.

Discarded equipment does not stand the test of time. It collapses and turns into piles of scrap metal.

World landfills now these are valleys of garbage, most of which are the result of human technical activity. Synthetic components extend the decay time by tens, hundreds of years. Waste accumulation is occurring at a rapid pace. Fills the earth and water spaces.

Our country has 18,000 legal properties.How many landfills are there in Russia?unauthorized ones are difficult to count. The number varies between 30,000.

Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Tatarstan, Moscow, Samara, Volgograd regions are considered leaders in terms of their number. From 500 to 860 waste disposal points.

The largest polygons

General landfill area in Russiaapproaching 4 million hectares.

The Igumnovsky training ground in Nizhny Novgorod is the largest in the country. He accepted waste for 35 years. 25 million tons covered an area of ​​120 hectares. Currently closed. Work is underway to eliminate it.

The Moscow region accounts for 20% of the state's waste - 10,000,000 tons annually. 41 legal points and thousands of spontaneous waste disposal sites. Industrial waste is processed 50%, solid waste - 1%.

Current major points:

• Timokhovsky in the Noginsky district. Accepts 3000 tons of garbage daily since 1977. Designed for 42 million tons.
• Torbeevsky Lyubertsy district - 400 thousand tons annually. 70% full.
• Tsarevo, Pushkinsky district, has been receiving 200,000 tons since 1984.
• Lesnoy in Serpukhov - annual intake is 600 thousand tons.

Safety standards for heavy metals were exceeded at each facility by 8 times. Gases accumulated in the thickness cause fires. Rotting food scraps, spreading odors, attract rodents, birds, and wild animals. The sanitary and epidemiological situation is tense.

360 hectares of the Samara region are occupied by waste disposal sites. 500 thousand tons are industrial waste, 12% undergo subsequent processing.

• Preobrazhenka - territory 29 hectares. The height of the piles reaches 130 m. It processes 70% of city waste. 3,000 cubic meters are delivered daily. Biogas is converted into electricity for the needs of the facility. For four decades, it has been accepting waste of hazard levels 4 and 5.
• Danilovsky (Tolyatti) - industrial waste landfill. Recycles 200 thousand tons per month. The main supplier of junk is automobile manufacturing companies.

Half of the region's recycling points operate against the law. Unauthorized dumping sites threaten the environment. 86 thousand cubic meters of dangerous trash are decomposing. Releases toxic compounds into the soil and air.

The Republic of Tatarstan has 53 testing grounds with an area of ​​360 hectares. Residents and enterprises produce 9.5 million tons of waste. Part 10 undergoes secondary processing.

The largest ones operated for more than 60 years. Closed, having exhausted accumulation resources:

• Samosyrovskaya in Kazan.
• Togaevskaya in Naberezhnye Chelny.

The Republic of Tatarstan is divided into 2 waste processing zones: Western (Kazan part) and Eastern (Naberezhnye Chelny district). Separate waste collection is being introduced.

The Bobrovskaya landfill in Ugra raises concerns among environmentalists. On the banks of the Irtysh and Bobrovka rivers 40 l. the boards are rotting. 20,000 cu.m. m. remains from a sawmill that closed in the 90s of the 20th century.

In the area of ​​Nefteyugansk (KhMAD), there is a waste collection point covering 40 hectares. Capacity 90 thousand tons per year. This territory will last for decades.

The construction of similar facilities in large cities of the Khanty-Mansiysk Okrug should solve the problem of waste removal and the destruction of illegal dumps.

Every city in the country has dozens of waste storage facilities. Big and small - they show everything what does it look like human relationship to nature.

Landfills in Russiaoften form spontaneously. Heaps of solid waste are growing rapidly, occupying land areas, and threatening nature. Punishment for organizing an unauthorized landfill is established by law. Article 8.2 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation provides for a legal fine. persons in the amount of 250,000 rubles, suspension of activities for 3 months.

The largest facilities are located in Uryupinsk (Volgograd region), Podolsk district of the Moscow region, Shushary (Leningrad district), Mitino (Moscow). Waste of hazard classes 1-5 is dumped here. Chemicals, poisons, heavy metals penetrate the soil and groundwater. Irreversible damage is being caused to the environment.

Landfills in Russiaare heaps decomposing in the open air. There are 243 waste processing plants throughout the country. Covers 4% of total waste.

Waste from cities is transported using special equipment. The machines cannot cope with the growing volumes. The dimensions of cars are increasing. In Europe they use a 30-meter road train with a capacity of 60 tons. It is combined with 3 links.

The largest garbage truck in the worldwas made in the Vologda region. The Ryazhsky Automobile Repair Plant assembled an auto giant with a body that could accommodate 3 wagons of garbage (25 tons).

People generate waste in huge quantities. Household and industrial waste covers many kilometers of areas. Captures habitable territories. Biological gases from putrefactive processes provoke the greenhouse effect. Toxic compounds kill living organisms and poison nature. Recovery takes decades.

Many people have probably watched the Disney animated film “WALL-E” and remember what our empty planet looked like, turned into a landfill. Let's leave cartoons to children, but we, adults, should think about whether this plot is prophetic, and whether everything will end as well as in the cartoon? To confirm this, we offer you a tour of the countries, but we will not be looking at the sights, but at the garbage dumps. Perhaps such a tour is not the most pleasant, but it is educational and instructive. So, 8 large landfills in the world.

You don't have to go far to see how gigantic a landfill can become. Located in the village of Salaryevo is a large mountain covered with sparse vegetation. However, this is not a natural relief, but a landfill mothballed in 2007.

At first 60s years, it was an ordinary ravine, where garbage from the capital and nearby settlements gradually began to be transported. Over time, the height of the garbage mountain reached 80 meters, while the area was slightly less than 60 hectares, and that’s when it was closed.

2. Fresh Kills, USA

Another human creation competes in size with the Chinese Wall - the Fresh Kills landfill in America. Today it is also closed, they are trying to clean and level the territory, but its size continues to amaze.

It was opened in 1948, over time its height exceeded the Statue of Liberty by as much as 25 meters. It happened that about 13 thousand tons of household and industrial waste, which was delivered by barges.

3. Landfill in New York, USA

Continuing our journey through the “garbage places” of the United States, we stop at a landfill in New York, which was opened not so long ago, in 2001, but has already earned a reputation as a large landfill. Over 10 thousand tons of waste are shipped there every day. The landfill can boast of a 25-meter mountain of garbage.

4. Puente Hills in California, USA

Our last stop in America is California and the Puente Hills landfill, which covers an area of ​​almost 280 hectares. Over 1.5 thousand trucks transport waste there every day. On average, the amount of garbage in a landfill increases by 10 thousand tons per day. Here the highest mountain of garbage reaches 150 meters.

Everyone knows that throwing electronic devices into regular landfills is prohibited; it is even prohibited by law in most countries. There are etc. However, old equipment from America, Japan, and European countries ends up in the Agbogbloshie landfill in Accra.

And it gets to Ghana not in a mystical way, but through all sorts of customs tricks - under the guise of humanitarian aid, used goods. The situation is aggravated by the attempts of local residents to extract non-ferrous metals from devices; they do this unprofessionally; dangerous toxins are released into the environment.

6. Hawaiian Archipelago, Pacific Ocean

So we have reached the largest landfill on the planet. Location: North Pacific Ocean, an uninhabited landfill archipelago with an area of ​​6 thousand square kilometers. Plastic predominates among waste; when garbage decomposes, toxins that are extremely dangerous for all living things are released.

Chittangog is not exactly a landfill, but rather a graveyard of old ships, which is officially called a ship recycling center. In fact, this is a place where thousands of workers (local residents) are engaged in dismantling for a minimum wage, and none of them have heard about labor safety and the environment. Lead waste and motor oil all remain on the shore.

Why did we stop at the UK at the end of the excursion, since there are no giant landfills there? Simply, the amount of waste generated in Foggy Albion per year is twice the annual volume of waste in all eurozone countries.

One of the main environmental problems facing humanity is the problem of waste. The invention of artificial materials has meant that our waste will remain in landfills for hundreds of years without decomposing, poisoning the air, water and soil. Thousands of marine animals and millions of birds are dying due to plastic waste; burning garbage leads to emissions of toxic substances and an increase in cancer; landfills are increasing every year, capturing more and more new territories.

We are used to throwing garbage into a bucket, and from the bucket into a trash can. We know that special equipment picks it up from the trash can and takes it away. Thus, garbage disappears again and again from our bucket, from the trash can, from our yard and city... But not from our planet. Probably, if it were now customary to pour out waste and throw it directly onto the streets, as it once was in Europe, we would think about this problem more seriously, and much earlier. But we don’t see the scale of the disaster, and therefore we don’t worry about where our juice bottle found its final resting place.

The largest landfills in the world:

Great Pacific Garbage Patch

One of the largest landfills in the world is located in the North Pacific Ocean. Mostly plastic and technical waste accumulate there. Until recently, it was believed that the garbage patch was twice the size of the US state of Texas and looked like a huge island in the middle of the ocean. Recent studies have shown that most of the garbage consists of small plastic particles, about 5x5 mm, which are distributed on the surface and in the middle layers of water. Thus, it is not possible to determine the true extent of pollution, since its dimensions are not determined from an airplane or satellite. According to some reports, the area of ​​the garbage patch varies from 700 thousand to 15 million square kilometers, which in total can reach 8% of the total area of ​​the Pacific Ocean.

Sea creatures get a double whammy - along with toxic chemicals released from plastic breakdown, they ingest massive amounts of toxins by ingesting pieces of plastic. Plastic waste is becoming part of the food chain, with humans at the top.

Bordo Poniente Landfill (Spanish: El Bordo Poniente) (Latin America)

The largest municipal solid waste landfill in Latin America, a landfill located in the east of Mexico City is Bordo Poniente. The volume of waste in the landfill is over 60 million tons, the occupied area is about a thousand hectares of land. 12,500 tons of garbage are transported to it every day. In November 2010, the landfill was closed because it had become extremely dangerous. Subsidence of the soil under the landfill has led to the penetration of liquid waste decomposition products into groundwater, which is now unsuitable for use even for technical purposes. In addition, when waste rots, methane is produced, which leads to fires that are very difficult to extinguish. The toxic smoke from such fires has a detrimental effect on the health of city residents. The landfill also poses an epidemiological danger: many pathogenic bacteria develop on it, which enter the water and spread through the air.

Agbogbloshie Landfill (Accra, Republic of Ghana, Africa)

This is one of the largest electronic waste dumps in the world. Almost all developing countries dump electronic waste at this landfill. Every year about 200,000 tons of such waste are brought here, often under the guise of used electronics and humanitarian aid. Agbogbloshie in Accra is a workplace for several thousand local residents. The main labor force is boys aged 10 to 18 years. They try to extract non-ferrous metals from faulty devices using the burning method, and, as a result, tons of toxins are released into the atmosphere. Despite the huge amount of harmful substances released by the waste, none of the workers have any protective equipment. Lead, mercury, and arsenic enter the lungs of local residents and cause great harm to their health. The average salary of people working at a landfill 12 hours a day is about 2-3.5 dollars per working day.

Puente Hills Landfill (USA)

This California landfill is considered the largest operating landfill in the United States. About 10.3 thousand tons of garbage are brought there. Waste from more than half the state is brought here. The highest peak of the landfill is 150 meters, and the total area is almost 283 hectares.

Apex Regional Landfill (USA)

The landfill is located in the vicinity of Las Vegas and contains about 5 million tons of garbage. It is the largest in terms of the amount of garbage that is dumped into it daily - 10.5 thousand tons, most of which is solid household waste.

Landfills in Lagos (Nigeria)

The official city landfill receives 9 thousand tons of waste every day, however, every month 500 sea containers with used electronics arrive at the city port, which are taken to spontaneous landfills in the vicinity of the city. Electronic waste is banned from regular landfills around the world as it is highly toxic.

Hong Kong landfills

There are 16 landfills in the vicinity of Hong Kong, but only 3 of them are operational. Every day they receive about 14 thousand tons of garbage.

Malagrotta landfill (Italy)

This is one of the largest landfills in the European Union. It receives about 4 thousand tons of garbage every day. There is evidence that they plan to cover the landfill with solar panels to generate electricity.

Test site in New York (USA)

The landfill in New York was opened not so long ago, in 2001, but has already earned a reputation as a large landfill. Over 10 thousand tons of waste are shipped there every day. The height of the landfill is 25 meters.

Perhaps the world's landfills and their dangers seem like something far away. But it is worth paying attention to the situation with the accumulation of garbage in Russia.

In the former Moscow Region, and now belonging to territory of Moscow in the village of Salaryevo, is one of the largest landfills in Europe. In 2007, the landfill was closed, and now in its place there is a huge mountain covered with sparse vegetation. Initially, the landfill area was about 60 hectares, but after its closure, spontaneous landfills began to form around it, so that the contaminated area grew to 300 hectares. The height of the landfill today reaches 80 m, which is comparable to the height of a 27-story building.

According to experts, it is strictly forbidden to build housing, child care facilities, or create recreational areas on the site of the former landfill. The most dangerous component of the landfill is leachate formed as a result of waste decomposition and released from the bowels of the landfill for a long time. Regular disposal of waste to a landfill leads to the compaction of waste under its own weight in the lower levels of the landfill. Air no longer penetrates into these layers; chemical reactions occur there, releasing methane and other volatile compounds containing heavy metals and toxic components. The gases released include xylene and toluene, they cause disorders of the nervous and circulatory systems, affect the respiratory system, provoke headaches, weakness and irritation of the mucous membranes. The filtrate is highly toxic; it may contain significant concentrations of acids and salts of heavy metals. The destructive consequences of its harmful effects (together with landfill gas) on living organisms are revealed over time.

Unfortunately, in Russia there are no rules prohibiting the construction of housing on the site or near former landfills, and the development of the territory while there is leachate in the ground. And he can stay there for 30-40 years! Since 2012, the territory of Salaryevo belongs to Moscow, and the construction of residential buildings is planned and carried out there. In February 2016, the Salaryevo metro station opened. (photo 4)

While some countries are allocating more and more of their own territories to landfills, others are solving garbage problems in alternative ways.

Germany is a pioneer in waste sorting and recycling. Now the system is an integral part of the lives of citizens - they are surprised when they hear that somewhere all the waste is thrown into one trash can. In Germany, there is a system of colored containers: only paper waste is carried into a gray container; in yellow - throw away cans and bottles; green is intended for collecting organic waste. At home and even in kindergarten, children are taught to separate garbage.

In addition to separate collection, the country has a “Duales System Deutschland GmbH” system, which legally obliges manufacturers to reduce the size of packaging for their goods and make them from raw materials that quickly decompose themselves or are recyclable. Today, waste recycling practice in Germany has developed to such a level that it has grown into a separate industrial sector. Now Germans even buy garbage from neighboring countries and make money from recycling it.

Finland is recognized as a world leader in paper and bottle recycling. By law, every house with more than 10 apartments must have containers for paper, glass, plastic, food and mixed waste. Old clothes are also collected at special points; some, under the patronage of the Red Cross, are sent to countries that need it. Some waste is accepted in specialized stores for separate disposal of waste containing harmful substances.

The success and efficiency of the process of sorting, processing and disposal of waste is ensured by modern and, most importantly, accessible infrastructure. Residential buildings, businesses and stores all have their own convenient waste collection points. For example, Finnish supermarkets have special machines that accept cans and bottles, issuing a receipt with the amount that the buyer can receive at the checkout. Also in Finland there is a system of depositing the cost of packaging - when buying a product, the buyer pays not only for the product, but also for the packaging. This fixed amount can be received upon returning the used containers to the store.

Australia is also a great example of a country successfully tackling its waste problem. Residents of all settlements pay local governments a fairly large amount (100-350 Australian dollars) on a quarterly basis for infrastructure development and waste removal, among other things.

Landfills here have a strict purpose - waste removal from farms and construction waste are transported to different places. This allows landfills to be used as an additional source of energy, for example, organic matter is converted into electricity here.

For Switzerland, waste is of strategic importance. The Immark plant represents one of the most successful examples of using waste as an inexhaustible source of profit. Complex sorting, processing and purification systems make it possible to extract kilograms of gold and silver and tons of iron and aluminum from used equipment, which is prohibited by law from being thrown into general waste in Switzerland. By effectively processing waste, the Confederation kills two birds with one stone: it reduces the level of environmental pollution and obtains raw materials for industry, without developing new deposits and saving on imports.

An original waste disposal solution was implemented in Singapore. The area of ​​the state does not allow for the establishment of huge landfills for garbage, so the garbage here is used as building material for the beautiful tropical island of Semaku, whose area is 350 hectares. This truly unique island consists of 63 million cubic meters of waste. The garbage is poured into special plastic cells, which are closed with a thick, dense membrane. The resulting structure is covered with a layer of soil suitable for growing plants. The island is planned to be used for waste disposal until 2045. (photo 5)

Thus, we see that solutions to waste disposal problems exist and are being put into practice. This requires the interest of the state, support at the legislative level and the personal focus of residents on separate waste collection, preserving the environment and protecting their health. The separate collection system in Germany was not always well-functioning and large-scale; it began with a handful of activists who were able to turn their eco-initiative into a state mechanism. This means that if you have an idea and initiative, this is possible in any other country, including ours. One of the steps could be to support their project to introduce separate collections at the state level. In addition, any changes should start with yourself and ask yourself questions: Am I buying too much? Is it possible to give my things a second life? Where is the nearest waste separation point? What can I do to help solve the waste problem?

Man creates waste, man created the problem of waste disposal and only man can solve it. So, as Leonardo DiCaprio so rightly said in his Oscar speech, “Let's not take our planet for granted.”

Based on materials from sites:

Maria Shvetsova

", I suggest you look at the photographs of the Irishman Andrew McConnell and Peter Hugo, a photographer from Johannesburg (South Africa). Both series are united by the fact that they were shot in the vicinity of Accra, the capital of the African republic of Ghana. We are talking about Agbogbloshie, the world's largest dump of electronics brought from Europe and America, in violation of the Basel Convention, which regulates the export of toxic waste to developing countries.

01 . Range.

02 . The Agbogbloshie e-waste dump in Accra is one of the largest in the world. Hundreds of thousands of pieces of decommissioned European and American electronic equipment are brought here every month. Local residents dig through this garbage, choosing what else can be used somehow. For disposal, the most primitive method is used - the equipment is burned on fires and thus non-ferrous metals, mainly copper, are extracted from it.

03 . An old monitor against the background of burning piles of garbage.

04 . Not only adults, but also teenagers are involved in sorting electronic waste at the Agbogbloshi landfill. After working 12 hours a day at a landfill, a teenager can earn about $2.

05 . Children are busy disassembling CRT monitors. Most recyclers at Agbogbloshie landfill simply burn copper from old circuit boards on fires.

06 . The warehouse is completely filled with old system units. The Agbogbloshie landfill provides employment to nearly 20,000 people in Accra.

07 . Those parts of old computers that still retain some functionality will be removed and sold. There are many businesses in Ghana that buy old computers from Western countries for $10 each. After processing, such a computer is resold for tens of times more expensive.

08 . The still working parts are removed from the board and put back into use.

09 . To extract non-ferrous metals, computer scrap is simply burned on fires. This method of “processing” releases a huge amount of highly toxic substances into the environment. The content of lead, cadmium and mercury in the soil at the Agbogbloshi landfill is several hundred times higher than all imaginable standards.

10 . Livestock roam the landfill; right in the middle of clouds of toxic smoke.

11 . In 2008, a study initiated by Greenpeace found high levels of lead, chlorine dioxide, cadmium, antimony, polyvinyl chloride and other toxic substances in soil samples taken from Agbogbloshie.

12 . David Akore, 18 years old.

13 . Under the 1989 Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal, which has been ratified by 170 countries, developed countries must notify developing countries of the import of toxic waste.

14 . Every year, developed countries produce from 20 to 50 million tons of electronic waste, 70% of which, bypassing the Basel Convention, is exported to the poorest countries under the guise of second-hand goods or humanitarian aid.

15 . Yakub Al-Hassan, 20 years old.
Buyers of non-ferrous metals value copper the most, followed by brass, aluminum, and zinc. A hard drive in working condition can be sold for $20.

16 . Computer monitors replace chairs for landfill dwellers.

17 . Ibrahim Sally, 17 years old.

18 . Yau Francis, 17 years old.
It is clear that there is no talk of any safety precautions; teenagers constantly deal with toxic substances such as lead, mercury, cadmium and beryllium.

19 . Lunch break. Bon appetit!

16.04.2018 10:57

Moscow, April 16 - “Vesti.Ekonomika”. In recent years, the problem of waste disposal has become one of the most pressing in the world. However, the problem is much broader: unauthorized landfills are being formed more and more rapidly in different countries of the world.

Such landfills are not only illegal, they also cause fires and pollute soils, rivers and underground reservoirs. That is, they cause irreparable damage to the environment.

However, there are also positive examples of waste use, where landfills produce electricity and biofuel by processing incoming waste.

Below we will talk about the 15 largest landfills in the world.

Xinfeng Landfill, Guangzhou, China - 92 ha

More than 10 million people live in Guangzhou. Every day, the city generates 8 thousand tons of waste that ends up in the Xinfeng landfill.

This landfill is operated by the French company Veolia.

This landfill is one of the largest in Asia; $100 million was allocated for its construction.

The incinerator operated by Xinfeng processes about 2,000 tons of waste per day, producing biogas and electricity.

Veolia takes half of the energy received, while the other half goes to the needs of the city.

West New Territories landfill, Hong Kong - 110 hectares

Hong Kong is one of the most developed countries in the world, but the country produces huge amounts of waste.

Much of this waste ends up in the West New Territories landfill, which covers an area of ​​110 hectares.

This is the largest landfill in Hong Kong. It is managed by the French company Suez Environment.

However, there is a positive aspect - the management company produces gas and electricity from waste.

It is noted that although this is the largest, it is not the only garbage dump in Hong Kong.

Every day, up to 14 thousand tons of garbage arrive in Hong Kong landfills.

Deonar landfill, Mumbai, India - 132 hectares

India produces about 60 million tons of waste every year.

Of this volume, the city of Mumbai accounts for 2.7 million tons.

The Deonar landfill, which covers an area of ​​132 hectares, is located in the eastern suburbs of Mumbai.

This is the oldest landfill in India, established by the British back in 1927.

Every day, up to 8 thousand tons of waste are sent to the landfill

Landfill in Newton County, Indiana, USA - 162 hectares

This is a huge landfill in the US state of Indiana, which covers an area of ​​162 hectares.

This landfill serves nearly 300 households and businesses.

It is estimated that the landfill will continue to accept waste for the next 20 years, which will lead to an increase in its territory.

Attempts are currently being made to transform the disposal of incoming waste and reduce the level of odors.

Landfills New Delhi, India - 202 hectares

The Indian city of New Delhi produces about 9,200 tons of garbage every day.

This waste is distributed into three landfills - Narela Bawana, Bhalswa, Okhla and Ghazipur.

The total area of ​​these landfills reaches 128 hectares.

With the exception of the newly formed Narela Bawana, the rest of the landfills are very old and have been exhausted for a long time.

For example, at the Bhalswa landfill, the height of garbage heaps already reaches a height of 41 meters. Nevertheless, the landfill is still operating, and more and more garbage is being brought here.

In 2013, an additional area of ​​74 hectares was allocated for waste storage near New Delhi.

Thus, to date, the total area of ​​landfills in the city is 202 hectares.

Sudokwon Landfill, Incheon, South Korea - 231 ha

The Incheon landfill was created more than 20 years ago - in 1992.

Currently, about 20 thousand tons of garbage arrive here every day.

At the same time, 50 megawatts of electricity are produced from waste, thanks to which water is desalinated and soil fertility is restored.

At the same time, trees are planted here - more than 700 thousand in total.

This landfill is used as a clear example of how waste can be used effectively.

In particular, students are brought here on excursions. There is also a museum on the territory of the landfill.

Puente Hills, Los Angeles, USA – 255 hectares

This California landfill is considered the largest operating landfill in the United States.

Almost 1,600 trucks of household waste are delivered here every day.

Every day 10.3 thousand tons of garbage arrive here.

The highest peak of the landfill is 150 m, and the total area is almost 283 hectares.

Malagrotta landfill, Italy – 275 ha

This landfill is considered the largest in the European Union. About 4 thousand tons of garbage are brought here every day.

Until 1984, this landfill was illegal, but since 1984 it has been given legitimate status.

Here, as in other developed countries, they try to use waste for good. In particular, electricity and biofuel are produced from it.

Guatemalan landfill – 283 ha

This landfill is considered the largest in Central America.

500 tons of garbage are brought here every day.

This is a small volume compared to other landfills, and this is due to the fact that Guatemalan residents are not too concerned about waste disposal and easily throw it directly into the street.

Everything that can be thrown away is brought to this landfill and therefore it poses a serious threat to the health of thousands of people who live right on its demarcation line.

However, the landfill is also a source of income, as many residents rummage through the garbage in an attempt to find something valuable.

New York Landfill

To replace the old giant landfill that once existed in this largest metropolis, where garbage from all over the city was transported, a new huge landfill was built in 2001.

Every day 13 thousand tons of waste are brought there.

The New York landfill even has local landmarks, such as a huge mountain of garbage 25 m high.

Laogang landfill, Shanghai, China - 336 ha

This is China's largest landfill. It serves the largest city in the world by population - Shanghai.

However, this landfill is also an example of sensible waste disposal.

Here they collect methane, which is usually generated by all open-type landfills, and process it into electricity.

In total, they receive 102 MW of energy, which provides electricity to about 100 thousand households in the district.

Bordo Poniente Landfill, Mexico City, Mexico - 375 ha

Mexico City is one of the most populated cities on the planet and it is logical that one of the largest landfills in the world is located in the vicinity of this city itself.

This landfill was closed in 2011. Before its closure, it received about 15 thousand tons of waste daily.

In addition, the landfill fed entire families - people came here in search of valuable things.

However, after the closure of the landfill, these families lost their source of income.

The country's authorities planned to build a waste processing plant, but so far progress has been very slow.

Apex Regional Landfill, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA - 890 ha

This landfill is located in the vicinity of Las Vegas.

There are 5 million tons of garbage here. It is the largest landfill in the United States based on the volume of waste received daily.

Las Vegas and its suburbs produce about 10.5 thousand tons of garbage daily. This waste actually goes to the Apex Regional landfill.

The landfill is operated by Republic Services. It was opened in 1993.

This is the largest landfill in the USA.

Guiyu Landfill – 5,300 ha

This place is known to the world for having the world's largest e-waste dump. China is the largest importer of e-waste.

About a million tons of electronic waste are imported here annually, mainly from the USA, Canada, Japan and South Korea.

Guiyu began collecting electronic waste in 1995.

According to current estimates, about 150 thousand workers are engaged in processing waste from more than 100 trucks unloaded daily.

Guiyu is deservedly nicknamed the electronic graveyard.

Great Pacific Garbage Patch - 6 thousand square meters. km

The landfill, located in the archipelago near the Hawaiian Islands, is the largest landfill on our planet: its area is about 6 thousand square meters. km (600 thousand hectares).

Mostly plastic is exported here, and the toxins that are released from decomposing waste poison both humans and animals.

Mainly marine inhabitants suffer from the huge landfill: dolphins, whales and other animals.

The archipelago is incompatible with the life of any living organism, however, for many people who come here in search of something useful, it is the only source of income.