Hallam Road Landfill Community Updates

Looking to learn more about our processes? 

The following educational resources highlight landfill management practices and recycling tips.

• Explore the processes involved with landfill management 
• General waste recycling
• E-waste recycling
• Food organics recycling
• Recycling Tips (Part 1 & Part 2) 

Operational Fact Sheet 

Veolia Landfill Odour Poster 
 

Contour Amendment Fact Sheets

The site of the Hallam Road Landfill was historically a quarry. The largely pre-dug area received a landfill licence and commended landfilling in 1997. The landfill is licensed to accept solid inert waste, putrescible (municipal kerbside) waste and shredded tyres until 31 Dec, 2040.

As a part of this licence, Veolia remains responsible for the restoration of the land and environment during the aftercare period (estimated to be 30 years) from the licence end date, before the land is handed back to the City of Casey. The aftercare period is an estimate, as the aftercare will continue until an independent Environmental Auditor and the EPA are satisfied with the site's remediation. 

The Hallam Road site provides responsible environmental management of waste that cannot yet be reused or recycled from households, businesses and industry.

Waste types accepted:

Solid Inert Waste: This waste category contains hard waste that has a negligible activity or effect on the environment. The waste may be either a municipal or industrial waste. It  includes solid materials such as demolition waste that has been determined as not appropriate for recycling. This waste has a low organic content. 

Putrescible Waste: This waste category is commonly referred to as household waste, or kerbside waste collected by Councils. It  includes material that has a higher organic content that decomposes  over time and generates landfill gas

Biosecurity Waste: Biosecurity waste is material that has been seized at import or relates to waste that arrives offshore (commercial airline waste or galley waste). This waste is managed  through agreed processes determined by the Department of Agriculture, Water and Environment. This does not include biohazardous waste, which is not permitted for disposal at Hallam Road. 

Shredded tyres: The site is licensed to accept tyres which have been shredded, but rarely does so. This is because most tyres are recycled and rarely disposed of in landfill.

Engineered landfill cells are constructed to encapsulate waste, leachate and landfill gas within a contained system.

Landfill cells are constructed in accordance with the Environment Protection Authority’s Best Practice Environmental Management, which provides guidelines and legislative objectives. During the construction and capping stages, landfill cells are third party auditor verified and approved by the EPA before filling can commence.

The transfer station managed by Outlook Environmental is open to the public for waste and recycling disposal. Materials recovered from the transfer station are reused and recycled to prevent them going to landfill. To learn more about Outlook Environmental's social enterprise click here. 

The landfill managed by Veolia accepts waste from commercial customers and is not open to the public.

Landfill gas is generated within landfill cells as organic matter breaks down over time.

Landfill gas is managed by placing horizontal wells in the waste mass of the landfill cell during each strategic lift as waste is placed in the landfill cell. Once the cell reaches height additional vertical wells are drilled. The onsite gas capture system draws the landfill gas under vacuum and the combustible methane is converted to energy through the use of on-site engines. This process contributes enough electricity to the network to supply power to some 15,000 homes per year. Additional flares are used to neutralise landfill gas and support the engines during required maintenance periods.

For further understanding of landfill gas at Hallam Road landfill please explore these EPA resources, demonstrating periodic studies of the Hallam Road Landfill. 

Leachate is liquid generated from the waste mass within the landfill cell, or any liquid that comes in contact with the waste mass.

The design of each landfill cell allows for leachate to be captured and pumped by the leachate sump to the onsite leachate treatment facility.

The leachate treatment facility allows for onsite treatment of the liquid. Treatment includes aeration, which provides an oxygen rich environment for microorganisms to break down ammonia within the liquid. Additional treatments can be applied to restore pH and ammonia balances from time to time. 

Following treatment, the liquid meets the environmental standards of the water authority trade waste agreement. An approval is issued by the water authority to discharge liquid to the sewer for further treatment. Each discharge of leachate to the sewer requires a new approval to be issued by the water authority.

There are several controls in place to manage dust, sediment and litter including;

• Application of interim cover to contain waste at the tip-face
• Placement of litter nets to stop litter from leaving the active cell 
• Sealed roads and mandatory use of a wheel wash for trucks exciting the site during wet conditions
• Ongoing use of a street sweeper to maintain roads and capture debris
• Use of an on-site water cart to apply preventative dust suppression
• Planned closure of site if forecasts exceed the wind threshold for current operations
• Regular environmental monitoring to ensure compliance, including audits conducted by an   Environmental Auditor 

Additionally, it is important to note that Hallam Road Landfill is not licensed to accept contaminated soil.

After the landfill is closed Veolia will remediate and maintain the site during the aftercare period (which is estimated to be 30 years). The land will be returned to the council after remediation has been achieved and it has been approved as compliant by an independent auditor and EPA.

Waste will continue to decompose and create gas within the landfill cells even after the landfill is closed, although this will reduce in volume over time.

During the aftercare period Veolia will be responsible for: 

• Capping the final landfill cell and remediation of landscape 

• Ongoing environmental monitoring of landfill gas, leachate, groundwater and stormwater

• Ongoing maintenance of the site including landscaping and the landfill infrastructure that manages leachate and the landfill gas network 

• Ongoing engagement of a landfill gas management contractor who converts landfill gas into electricity. 

You can learn more about the management of closed landfills via the EPA’s resources here