Landfill Techniques

Remediation of a medical waste dump (Steenokkerzeel, Belgium)

In Steenokkerzeel, an illegal medical waste dump was found that required remediation. OVAM issued orders for official remediation. The work started in April 2000 and lasted a bit longer than two years.

The remediation consisted of selective excavation of various types of waste that had to be separated, conditioned, transported or destroyed. This concerned 13,000 tonnes of (high-risk) medical waste, 15,000 tonnes of industrial waste and 5,000 tonnes of domestic waste. The inert waste materials and reusable soil that was found during the excavation remained in place.