Six inches of soil daily cover adds up fast, especially when it’s nearly impossible to lay down exactly 6 inches. And it’s even harder to scape all of it off in the morning.
Is it really an issue? It’s just dirt, right? It’s easy, it’s available and it’s the standard for a reason. Besides, it’s useful for more than daily cover — capping finished working faces, laying platforms for vehicles and more.
But that dirt is eating your airspace, and your profitability, faster than you realize.
Dirt’s impact on your airspace
Let’s do the math.
Say you’re covering a half-acre working face with 6 inches of dirt each day.
That comes out to just over 400 cubic yards per day.
At six days a week, that adds to 2,418 cubic yards per week.
Over the course of a year, that 6 inches turns into upwards of 120,000 cubic yards of dirt.
Over the course of five years, that 120,000 turns into 600,000 cubic yards of dirt used.
That’s equivalent to building a five or six-acre new cell. When each acre costs about $400,000 to build, that’s $2 million.
Every five years, your dirt daily cover is wasting enough air space as a 5-acre cell.
By neglecting to explore your options for daily cover, you’re passing up a 20-25% boost in site longevity, the ability to increase profit with more airspace to sell and a daily cover process with long-term operational benefits.
Save airspace with alternative daily cover
While dirt has long been the traditional choice for landfills, it quickly eats through airspace and it’s not the most efficient option for daily cover.
Atmos’ Alternative Daily Cover foam creates an impermeable barrier layer that locks waste down and traps VOCs in. The water-based, EPA-approved foam expands 20-to-1 on contact on application and disintegrates to a fine powder by morning — meaning no lost airspace.
Here are the hidden advantages to your P and L.
Increased landfill capacity
The ADC foam uses no airspace. Not only will your active working cell last longer, but you can also delay costly land expansions.
Faster application
One person can cover half an acre in about 30 minutes. This allows you to save multiple hours of work and redistribute your labor force to other revenue-generating activities.
Operational flexibility
The foam’s formula can be adjusted for cover duration, from overnight up to several days. This flexibility means you don’t have to find an alternative solution for a long weekend.
Reduced environmental impact
As a water-based, EPA-approved and PFOS- and PFAS-free daily cover, Atmos’ ADC foam enhances eco-friendly waste management practices. Plus, it’s safe to the touch for your employees and environmentally friendly.
No CapEx necessary
Atmos owns and maintains the equipment, which eliminates a hefty CapEx budget line item and keeps control at the landfill-level.
Case study: Detroit landfill’s successful transition to ADC foam
Back in 2018, Riverview Land Preserve found itself on borrowed time. The only active cell at 400-acre landfill was running out of space and the next one hadn’t been approved yet.
The short-term solution? Use clean fill from an off-site borrow pit for daily cover. The long-term solution? Find a more sustainable daily cover option that was easier on the landfill’s time, equipment and airspace.
After considering multiple daily cover options, Riverview Land Reserve made the switch to Atmos’ Alternative Daily Cover (ADC) foam. The impact was immediate — they were finally free of imminent dirt-poverty and able to get back to turning profit.
For more details on how Riverview preserved their limited airspace, and dramatically reduced daily wear, costly maintenance, and man and machine hours on their daily cover operations, read this case study.
Let’s extend the life of your landfill
Your airspace is your most valuable asset. Protect it with Atmos’ foam daily cover.
• Increase your long-term ROI and delay costly landfill expansions
• Apply daily cover faster, with no impact on your CapEx budget
• Bolster your sustainability efforts and keep additional PFAS out of your landfill
Ready to see how Atmos’ ADC foam can impact your landfill’s bottom line? Contact us today for a consultation today.