South Carolina landfills are a widespread environmental and health problem throughout the state, with significant problems in waste management, control of development uses such as airfields or other amenities to reduce damages from pollutants that escape into surrounding stream flowways.
The state has about 40 operational landfills to accommodate waste from its residents and businesses, as well as a few surrounding states. From municipal solid waste landfills, to construction and demolition debris landfills.
The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) oversees landfills. In response to minimize the environmental threat and guard public health, the DHEC enforces rigid landfill-operational requirements.
These regulations cover the design, construction, operation, maintenance, and closure of landfills. They also include provisions for monitoring groundwater and methane gas emissions and for managing leachate, the liquid that drains or ‘leaches’ from a landfill.
But in spite of these state and federal laws and policies, landfills have been a point or contention for some reasons, including the fact that the state of South Carolina is accepting waste from outside the state, one of its major problems. South Carolina’s landfill space is in higher demand because it places among the top-five states that accept out-of-state waste in the United States. And the state of SC already has per capita landfill capacity that is above the national average.
The Lee County Landfill is the state’s oldest, largest landfill.
Slated to receive waste from as far away as up and down the East Coast, this includes tons of coal ash – one byproduct when electric utilities burn the black rock for power. Coal ash often contains heavy metals such as arsenic, lead and mercury that can get into groundwater causing health hazards. The landfill’s operators have maintained the facility is not a public health danger, but neighbours and environmentalists both alike fear pollution.
South Carolina is no better off in terms of landfill capacity. At the current rate, South Carolina’s landfill capacity is projected to be full in less than 20 years according to DHEC. This begs the question of where this waste should end up, and what unpredictable environmental consequences are instore.
South Carolina landfills also emit a significant amount of greenhouse gases. When organic waste breaks down in landfills, it releases methane — an extremely dangerous greenhouse gas. Although some landfills pull in this gas and turn it into power, many do not (also doing very little to combat climate change).
South Carolina is considering several waste-reduction and recycling proposals to curb the problem. SC has a statewide recycling goal of 40% by the year 2030, that can provide grants and technical assistance to local governments in order to help increase their rates. Interest is also rising in composting to keep organic waste from landfills and breeding methane.
Overall, the landfills located throughout South Carolina are doing an important job in addressing waste management needs, but at a significant environmental and health cost. If we want something better for the residents of Charleston and other cities in SC, we have to ensure that it will maintain the heavy hand of regulation and further support waste-minimization, recycling programs over landfilling-only alternatives for a cleaner healthier future.