Incheon City Designs Its Own Landfill as 'Eco-Friendly'... Only Incineration Ash and Non-Combustible Waste Buried

Creation of 'Eco Land' at 1/100 Scale of Sudogwon Landfill
Underground Landfill and Dome-Shaped Construction... Daily Intake 161t
No Leachate Generation, Blocking Dust, Gas, and Odor Emissions

Example of the Tentative 'Incheon Eco Land' Development Model [Provided by Incheon City]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] Incheon City is preparing for the end of the use of the Sudokwon Landfill Site in 2025 by constructing a new landfill site using an eco-friendly method instead of the current direct landfill method.

On the 5th, the city unveiled plans for the eco-friendly landfill site tentatively named 'Incheon Eco Land.' Incheon Eco Land will process only waste generated in Incheon, following the principle of waste treatment at the source of generation.

Incheon Eco Land differs from the current Sudokwon Landfill Site in Seo-gu, Incheon, in all aspects including scale and landfill facility type.

The Sudokwon Landfill Site covers an area of 16 million square meters with a landfill capacity of 229.81 million tons and operates by directly burying household and industrial waste. This has caused environmental damage to surrounding areas due to odors and leachate generation.

In contrast, Incheon Eco Land will have a site area of less than 150,000 square meters and a capacity of about 2.34 million cubic meters, which is one hundredth the size of the Sudokwon Landfill Site. It will only landfill incineration ash from household waste incineration and non-combustible waste.

The city predicts that by increasing household waste separation and strengthening the recycling of bricks and paving blocks made from incineration ash of household waste and sewage sludge, the daily intake will be only 161 tons, equivalent to about eight 20-ton trucks.

This is about 7.4% of the daily household waste intake at the Sudokwon Landfill Site last year (approximately 2,164 tons). At this rate, the city expects the landfill to be usable for about 40 years in phases of 10 years each.

Incheon Eco Land is planned to be constructed in four phases, with the actual landfill facility being built to a capacity of around 600,000 cubic meters in the first phase.

To minimize the environmental impact on the surrounding area, the city plans to build the landfill facility 40 meters underground and install clay treatment and high-strength impermeable membranes to isolate it from the outside.

A dome-shaped building will be constructed on top of the landfill facility to isolate both underground and aboveground areas from the surrounding region. Since rainwater and groundwater will not enter and only incineration ash and non-combustible waste will be landfilled, no leachate will be generated and landfill gas production will be minimized.

A small amount of landfill gas generated during the landfill process will be collected through gas wells and used as an eco-friendly energy source. After the landfill is completed, the dome will be dismantled and the area will be developed into a park or outdoor sports facilities to provide a resting space for residents.

The candidate site for Incheon Eco Land is expected to be announced on the 12th.

Oh Heungseok, Incheon City Transportation and Environment Coordinator, said, "The creation of Incheon Eco Land is essential for ending the use of the Sudokwon Landfill Site, a long-standing wish of Incheon citizens, and for a major shift in waste treatment policy." He added, "We ask for active cooperation in understanding that this facility will be an eco-friendly one completely different from the current landfill method, causing no environmental pollution or harm to residents."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.