Environmental rehabilitation techniques for contaminated sites: the case study of S. Tammaro landfill

Remediation of sites formerly used as landfills is one of the relevant themes for the environmental recovery of degraded areas. Rehabilitation techniques, at the best of available technology, may let to control the principal pollution phenomena due to production of biogas and leachate. The problem assumes a more complex aspect if one wants achieve, together with remediation, a site recovery aimed to definite functions and to an environmental adaptation coherent and compatible with the surrounding territory, also for the scope of different multiple uses. A systematic and coordinated recovery action must pass through some technologies able to fit the needs of proposed final uses, evaluating each single case to obtain an accettable result. In the present work some examples are discussed of technical solutions which may be applied and which perform a good environmental compatibility in relation to final uses of rehabilitated sites. Some applications are also presented and discussed: they concern a recovery study of the San Tammaro landfill in Italy, and the design and realization of the rehabilitation of a large landfill site in Staten Island, N.Y., with a final destination to public park and activation of multiple ecosystem for the benefit of the whole urban area.