The "area method" of landfilling is used at the Hillside Landfill. Refuse is unloaded directly at the toe or at the top of the inclined working face and into daily disposal areas. Each disposal area contains the refuse delivered to the site on that day. The incoming refuse is unloaded within the active landfilling area (daily working face), and spread in lifts of two feet thick, using bulldozers and compaction equipment. Waste is then compacted prior to the next lift being placed.
The waste is covered at the end of each day with soil or a disposable tarp.
Waste placement in disposal areas is performed in accordance with a predetermined fill sequence plan, which is permitted by TCEQ. Under the plan, the daily working face is minimized to reduce the generation of leachate to the extent practical. Construction of the final cover begins once areas have reached their maximum grades.
Scalehouse
Located on the asphalt-paved internal access road is a computerized weigh station. Trucks are weighed in and out of the site utilizing a 70-foot, 100-ton capacity scale.
The scalehouse computer system maintains a database of each transaction, including the name of the customer, volume, weight, waste type, and time of disposal. State-required quarterly and annual reports are generated with this data.
Traffic entering and exiting the weigh station is videotaped on a closed circuit television and monitored at the scalehouse facility. Speed limit signs, no smoking signs and signs directing traffic to the working face are posted along the access road.
Special Wastes
The Hillside Landfill uses a TCEQ-approved waste screening program to identify unauthorized waste. Employees are trained in proper observation, identification and handling of special waste. Special waste customers must have their wastes profiled and pre-approved by qualified technical staff within WM prior to acceptance at the facility, in accordance with a TCEQ-approved waste acceptance plan.