In the process, mining recovers valuable recyclable materials, a combustible fraction, soil, and landfill space.
The overall appearance of the landfill mining procedure is a sequence of processing machines laid out in a functional conveyor system.
The Hiriya landfill operated by the Dan Region Authority next to the city of Tel Aviv, Israel, introduced the concept of mining as early as 1953.
In the US, the Environmental Protection Agency requires closed landfills to be monitored for at least 30 years after waste placement ceases.
An excavator or front end loader uncovers the landfilled materials and places them on a moving floor conveyor belt to be taken to the sorting machinery.
A smaller trommel then allows the biodegraded soil fraction to pass through leaving non-biodegradable, recyclable materials on the screen to be collected.
Odor control sprayers are wheeled tractors with a cab and movable spray arm mounted on a rotating platform.
A large reservoir tank mounted behind the cab holds neutralizing agents, usually in liquid form, to reduce the smell of exposed wastes.