Designing a constructed wetland to treat landfill leachate

The aim of this project was to identify a suitable solution to the problem of landfill leachate at the North Katoomba landfill site. Options were affected by a range of constraints including economics, location and the intrusion of ground water into the landfill. The initial goal was to contain and treat the leachate on site, with the eventual target to discharge into the nearest receiving waters. A constructed wetland option was devised and researched, involving identification of the major pollutants contained within the leachate, developing a concept design and estimating the likely removal efficiencies expected. Investigations identified the primary pollution parameters as microbial and nutrients. Metals were found to be low in concentration although the wetland has the capacity to deal with these pollutants should they become part of the pollution plume. A bench scale constructed wetland system was developed to give an indication of the removal efficiencies. The results suggest that a constructed wetland system would be appropriate for treating landfill leachate at the North Katoomba site. It is recommended that a constructed wetland be established in the field to determine the long term treatment prospects and the potential management problems in a practical application