Alpharetta, GA- Recently, the ClosureTurf® system with solar arrays from Watershed Geo was recognized as part of a project that received the SWANA Bronze Excellence Award in the category of Landfill Redevelopment. The award was presented to the Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority (MIRA) and Fuss & O’Neill for their entry: “Hartford Landfill State-of-the-Art Closure and Solar Electricity Generating Facility.”
The 35-acre state-of-the-art engineered synthetic turf closure system and one megawatt Solar Electricity Generating Facility (Solar EGF) located in Hartford, Connecticut, was completed in 2014. The landfill i the first in Connecticut to use the ClosureTurf system and the first to generate solar power. At peak capacity, it is expected to power approximately 1,000 homes per day.
In addition, ClosureTurf has only 18% of the carbon footprint of a traditional cover, conserving 100,000 cubic yards of clean, virgin soil that would have been required and eliminating 18,000 truck trips that would have been needed to deliver the soil to the Hartford Landfill site. ClosureTurf eliminated the potential impacts of slope erosion on the surrounding community, which consisted of many thriving businesses including approximately ten new car dealerships.
ClosureTurf, the engineered synthetic turf closure system, is an alternative to the traditional soil cover systems commonly used to cap landfills. It consists of a structured geomembrane, an engineered synthetic turf layer and an infill, which can be either cementitous or sand. The ClosureTurf system eliminates landfill gas emissions and the infiltration of storm water improving the operation of both the landfill gas collection and the control system.
SWANA’s Excellence Awards program recognizes outstanding solid waste programs and facilities that advance the practice of environmentally and economically sound solid waste management through their commitment to utilizing effective technologies and processes in system design and operations, advancing worker and community health and safety and implementing successful public education and outreach programs. The candidate for the award must also demonstrate they are fiscally and environmentally responsible through their compliance with all applicable federal, state and local regulations.
“It is a huge honor to be part of this project and to see it recognized by industry peers,” says Paul O’Malley, Vice President of Sales. “First and foremost, the Hartford closure exemplifies how our ClosureTurf system benefits the community at large with reduced air pollution and odor, cleaner water runoff and a beautiful, more natural looking cover that fits into the surrounding neighborhoods. By adding the solar component, the landfill went from an unusable ‘dead space’ to a clean source of green energy that will benefit the community for decades to come.”
The 2015 awards honor 31 programs and facilities in 12 different categories, spanning many facets of the municipal solid waste industry. Award winners represent the most innovative and dynamic organizations throughout North America as judged by their peers.
