Browsing by Author "Ziyath, A.M."

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    Relating climatic parameters with leachate chemistry and its association with river water quality
    (Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2015) Weerakoon, W.M.D.S.K.; Weragoda, S.K.; Kalpage, C.S.K.; Ziyath, A.M.; Manipura, A.
    Increased solid waste generation due to rapid urbanization and industrialization is a major problem in the world (Golomeova et al. 2013). .Landfilling is the most common disposal method of municipal solid waste (MSW) in developing countries, even though majority of these landfills are not properly managed, and pose a serious threat to the environment due to leachate run-off which contaminates the nearby ground water and surface water bodies (Kjeldsen 1993). The quantity and quality of leachate is influenced by various factors and climatic conditions are one of these governing factors (Chu et al. 1994; Johansen & Carlson 1976). Hence this study was carried out focusing on the impact of climatic parameters on leachate quality and its association with the Mahaweli river water quality which has not yet been further studied. Meantime two main objectives were fulfilled during the process of reaching the main target. They were, investigating seasonal variation of leachate chemistry and Mahaweli river water quality and developing correlation between climatic parameters, leachate chemistry and Mahaweli river water quality. Materials and methods Landfill leachate ,river water samples and ground water samples were collected from the leachate drain of the Gohagoda landfill, four locations along the Mahaweli river- two upstream and two downstream points from where leachate drain to the river and from two wells within the landfill. Weekly sampling was carried out for a period of two months and sample preservation, storage and analysis were performed according to Standard Methods (APHA, 1999). Daily temperature and rainfall data were collected from Horticultural Crop Research and Development Institute (HORDI) Gannoruwa and the statistical computations were performed with MINITAB version 17.0. Results and Discussion All the measured leachate and water quality data are summarized in Table 1.As the first step, primary leachate characteristic values were being compared with the past studies (Wijesekara et al.) and with the recommended standards of tolerance limits for discharge of effluent for inland surface waters by the Central Environmental Authority (CEA). Alkaline pH value represented the methanogenic stage of the landfill(More than 10y of operation) and exceed the CEA value. TDS and EC values of the leachate were very high (1.33× 10 mg/L & 2.05×10 µs/cm) compared to other sites. Dissolved Oxygen showed a very low value (0.09 mg/L) at the leachate drain owing to the anaerobic conditions and oxidisable organic matter related components are measured as BOD and COD. Both of these components were exceeding the CEA values. BOD:COD ratio was stated as 0.911 representing acidogenic condition which contrast with the above results. It is obvious that the uncontrolled dumping of the waste can produce leachate with various ages due to the irregular degradation pattern of the refuse material.(Wijesekara et al).