What makes up the largest portion of landfill waste?
According to the US EPA, the material most frequently encountered in MSW landfills is plain old paper, it sometimes accounts for more than 40 percent of a landfill's contents. Newspapers alone can take up as much as 13 percent of the space in US landfills.
EPA estimates that more food reaches landfills than any other single material in our everyday trash, constituting 24 percent of municipal solid waste. EPA works with stakeholders throughout the food system to reduce waste through partnership, leadership and action.
California has more landfills than any other state in the nation—more than twice as many, in fact, as every other state except Texas.
| Country | 2023 Population |
|---|---|
| China | 1,425,671,352 |
| United States | 339,996,563 |
| Indonesia | 277,534,122 |
| Pakistan | 240,485,658 |
- DEONAR LANDFILL - Mumbai, India (121 hectares)
- JARDIM GRAMACHO - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (244 hectares)
- PUENTE HILLS LANDFILL - Los Angeles, California, USA (283 hectares)
- SUDOKWAN - Incheon, South Korea (2,023 hectares)
- ALL OF THE OCEANS ON THE PLANET.
But it's not just households that produce waste; most is actually produced by the construction industry. Typical construction waste products include Insulation and asbestos materials, concrete, bricks, tiles and ceramics, wood, glass, and plastic. Much of this waste, about 20 million tonnes a year, end up in landfill.
Californians throw away nearly 6 million tons of food scraps or food waste each year. This represents about 18 percent of all the material that goes to landfills.
Food made up the largest component of MSW combusted at approximately 22 percent. Rubber, leather and textiles accounted for over 16 percent of MSW combustion. Plastics comprised about 16 percent, and paper and paperboard made up about 12 percent.
One third of all food produced is lost or wasted –around 1.3 billion tonnes of food –costing the global economy close to $940 billion each year. Up to 10% of global greenhouse gases comes from food that is produced, but not eaten. Source: United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) (2021). Food Waste Index Report 2021.
EPA data show that food waste is the single most common material landfilled and incinerated in the U.S., comprising 24 and 22 percent of landfilled and combusted municipal solid waste, respectively.
What makes up most of the waste in the US?
Food waste and yard trimmings make up more than a third (33.7%) of U.S. garbage and are organic and easily compostable, but the U.S. lacks sufficient infrastructure. Paper and paperboard, some of which could be composted and the rest of which could be recycled, make up nearly a quarter (23.1%) of America's trash.
In fact, food is the single largest component taking up space inside US landfills,6 making up 22 percent of municipal solid waste (MSW).
Supermarkets, restaurants and consumers are responsible for the majority of food waste in the U.S. and other developed countries. Grocery stores contribute to food waste by encouraging consumers to buy more than they need, overstocking shelves, inaccurately predicting shelf life or damaging products.
China and India produce more household food waste than any other country worldwide at an estimated 92 million and 69 million metric tons every year, respectively. This is unsurprising, considering both countries have by far the largest populations globally.
Environmental Impact of Landfills
The most pressing environmental concern regarding landfills is their release of methane gas. As the organic mass in landfills decompose methane gas is released.
This statistic provides a ranking of some of the world's largest dump sites as of 2019. The Apex Regional Landfill in Las Vegas, United States covers about 2,200 acres of land and is the nations largest landfill site.
All that trash has to end up somewhere and as a result, the 2,000 active landfills in the US are reaching their capacity.
- Glass bottles. Time to break down: one million years.
- Plastic bags. Time to break down: 200-500 years.
- Aluminium cans. Time to break down: 80-200 years.
- Rubber-soled shoes. Time to break down: 50-80 years.
- Tin cans. Time to break down: 50 years.
- Clothing. Time to break down: up to 40 years.
- Plastic film* ...
- Paper coffee cups.
Municipal Solid Waste Landfills
These sites are typically what come to mind when you think about a landfill. However, just because they are the most common kind does not mean that they are open to the public.
The three most important problems with landfill are toxins, leachate and greenhouse gases.
What is the largest component of waste?
Food waste is the largest component of US landfills at 24%—more than plastic (18%), paper (12%), metal (9%), and glass (5%).
What is the Most Typical Material Encountered in Landfills in the United States? According to The World Counts, “paper accounts for around 26% of total waste at landfills“. The most common item found in MSW landfills is plain old paper. Newspapers alone can occupy up to 13% of landfill space in the United States.
Food Waste in California
U.S. food waste is estimated to be 30-40% of the food supply, and Californians throw away approximately 6 million tons of food waste annually.
For the purposes of this review these sources are defined as giving rise to four major categories of waste: municipal solid waste, industrial waste, agricultural waste and hazardous waste.
As trash is laid down into the growing pile, it is compacted into a tightly packed mound. Each day a layer of soil is hauled into cover the garbage to prevent odors and rodent problems. Therefore, the landfill is mostly made up of compressed layers of trash and soil.
Solid waste is the main contributor to the creation of landfills worldwide. Homes, restaurants, schools, offices, and public places produce many used materials, rubbish, and garbage. The waste products include paper, wood, plastic, and obsolete electronic products, which are dumped in landfills.
How much food waste is there in the United States? Each year, 119 billion pounds of food is wasted in the United States. That equates to 130 billion meals and more than $408 billion in food thrown away each year. Shockingly, nearly 40% of all food in America is wasted.
Food is lost or wasted for a variety of reasons: bad weather, processing problems, overproduction and unstable markets cause food loss long before it arrives in a grocery store, while overbuying, poor planning and confusion over labels and safety contribute to food waste at stores and in homes.
...
Number of U.S. landfill facilities in 2018, by region.
Greenhouse gases generated from food rotting in landfills could be reduced to help mitigate climate change. According the U.S Environmental Protection Agency, in the United States, food is the single largest category of material placed in municipal landfills, where it emits methane, a powerful greenhouse gas.
