Grant: Collaborative Research and Development Grants

Well-developed passive and natural attenuation leachate management alternatives require comprehensive and integrated approaches to ensure sustained leachate mitigation. This project aims to develop, test and demonstrate, on a pilot-scale, a state-of-the-art integrated hybrid passive treatment technology that will allow for the controlled release and treatment of municipal landfill leachate through a waste heat temperature- regulated hybrid passive treatment system and subsequent natural attenuation zone, and contribute to the enhancement of a newly established fish habitat in a naturally depleted receiving environment. Specific research objectives include: (i) design, construction and long-term monitoring of a state-of-the-art pilot-scale waste-heat temperature-regulated integrated hybrid passive system treating leachate at the Merrick Landfill under temperate climatic conditions; (ii) toxicity assessment of leachate treated through the pilot-scale hybrid passive system and determination of potential impact of release on surface receivers; and, (iii) characterization of leachate, groundwater and surface water interactions through a comprehensive hydrogeochemical study and determination of leachate plume dispersion potential for the controlled release of treated leachate targeting discharge characteristics to enhance receivers. This research involves partnerships with the City of North Bay, AQUA Treatment Technologies and Conestoga-Rovers & Associates. The City of North Bay will become a demonstration facility for other Canadian municipalities and project findings will allow our supporting organizations to directly apply elements of this cost-effective integrated hybrid passive treatment approach to other municipal and industrial landfill leachate applications. At least 3 graduate and 3 undergraduate students will be trained, providing an expertise that will benefit research and technical development in the environmental sustainability sector. The development and demonstration of cost-effective naturalized innovative solutions for leachate treatment has significant economic potential for smaller Canadian municipalities, Canadian environmental consulting engineers and managers of landfill leachate systems.