A CASE-STUDY OF NUISANCE IMPACT SCREENING FOR MUNICIPAL WASTE LANDFILL PLANNING

Nuisance impacts from waste facilities can aggravate community resista nce because odor, noise and visual impacts trigger more serious concer ns about impacts on community health, image and property values (1). I n order to assess nuisances, initial site selection processes for muni cipal landfills should use screening models to determine potential nui sance impact zones. Predicted impact zones could provide a basis to pl an buffer zones and mitigation efforts. This research work identifies simple screening models and required data to predict air quality, odor s, noise and visual impacts. The predicted results are compared with m easured values for odors, noise and visual impacts at a landfill that exhibits typical characteristics of the landfills in Western Canada, W ashington and Oregon, The results show that simple predictive methods fairly accurately describe the facility's nuisance footprint. Landfill gas migration and dispersion affect odors up to 500 m downwind and ma y serve as indicators for potential health risks. Noise and visual imp acts occur within 200 to 300 m of the site boundary. These areas can e ither be designated as buffer zones or alternatively, mitigation measu res (berms, vegetation and landscaping) can be used to protect sensiti ve land uses and reduce community annoyance.