GENERAL DESCRIPTION

According to EURELCO the North-West Europe (NWE) region has ~ 100,000 landfill (LF) sites. Most of these sites lack state-of-the-art environmental protection systems, leading to local pollution, land-use restrictions & global impacts. Fortunately, this problem can be transformed into an opportunity, as large volumes of resources (materials, energy & land area) in these LF can be recovered through Landfill Mining (LFM). In order for LFM to be widely implemented in the NWE region RAWFILL tackles the remaining barriers. The main challenge for stakeholders is the profitability risk due to the lack of reliable data on the recovery potential of LF. Even in the NWE region, inventories of the 100,000 LFs lack relevant data on LFs economic potential. Furthermore, traditional LF exploration methods are rather expensive, as they require analysis of multiple excavated waste samples. In order to fill these gaps, RAWFILL develops 1) an evidence-based, cost-effective standard LF inventory framework, 2) innovative LF characterisation by geophysical imaging and guided sampling demonstrated on 2 pilot sites and 3) an associated Decision Support Tool to allow smart LFM project prioritisation. To sustain long-term rollout of profitable LFM projects, RAWFILL institutes dedicate topic groups, installs & maintains an electronic library, trains ambassadors and ensures academic and extracurricular training. The impact of RAWFILL is guaranteed by long-term involvement of all RAWFILLs partners/associated partners & key stakeholders.