Municipal Solid Waste Landfills in Jordan - Current Conditions and Prospective Future

Jordan has seen a large increase in population during the past five decades as a result of high population growth rate and forced migrations. Economical and cultural development has improved the standard of living and changed consumer habits in the community, resulting in an increase in the volume of Municipal solid waste (MSW) with time. World Bank visibility study (2004) showed that the rate of production of solid waste in Jordan was estimated annually of about 1.46 million ton, and is expected to reach 2.5 million ton by year 2015 with a generation of 0.9 kg/capita/day. This increasing in the amounts of MSW is not yet accompanied with the proper management practice in Landfilling resources. It poses negative effects on the human health and environment. Throughout the country there are 24 landfills handling Municipal solid waste; one of the landfills is designed for sanitary landfilling but the others don’t have even the simplest needed requirements at present. In this work we discussed the general issues of the current situation of landfills, a recent literature on landfills has been reviewed, and data on the total amount of generation, future production and the composition are presented. The review of the legislation indicates there is a need for a new developed regulation to deal with landfills in a clear framework. Also the main obstacles which stand against developing this sector to sustainable levels in the coming future are identified. Suggestions and recommendations that should be taken in consideration for developing landfills are also presented