Assessment of Groundwater Pollution Potential of Municipal Solid Waste Dumps in Himachal Pradesh

Abstract

The disposal of solid waste in unrestrained MSW dumpsites can cause critical impacts on the surrounding habitat and human well-being. The health hazard and ecological deterioration from the unrestrained and unlined dumpsites is awell-knownreality. The most frequently reported threat to human health from these dumpsites is the utilizationof contaminated groundwater, which has been polluted by leachate formed from these dumpsites. A method is made to measure the dumpsite leachate pollution via an index. This index is termed as called as Leachate Pollution Index. Leachate Pollution Index is a perceptible means by which the leachate pollutioninformation of the dumpsites could be expressed systematically. The LPI is a rising scale indicator and is developed using Delphi technique. For remedial actions of the dumpsites, hazard ranking is done. Hazard ranking is done by using the DRASTIC method, GW-HARAS, mGW-HARAS and SIMRAS method. The purpose of this research was to estimate the degree of groundwater pollutionin the region of the dumpsites as a result of leachate permeated from five MSW dumpsites. Several physical and chemical parameters were tested which include: pH, BOD5, COD, Chloride, Iron, Ammonical Nitrogen, Copper, TKN, Chromium, area of the dumpsite, waste height, waste composition, slope of the top surface, soil permeability, depth to the groundwater. Based on the results obtained, it is summarized that a solitary number index which reflects the combined impact of considerablecontaminant variables on leachate pollution is achievable and it can offer a significant, homogeneoussystem of assessing the leachate infectivity potential of dumpsite at a specific time. The study is done for 5 different dumpsites of Himachal Pradesh. The results reflected that the majority of wells were polluted. Here concentrations of nearly all physical and chemical parameters weregreater thanadequatetypical levels for groundwater. It is clear that dumpsites cause potential harm to the neighboringatmosphere.