Maryland county officials approve methane mitigation project

A methane mitigation project has been approved for the closed City County Landfill in Hagerstown, Maryland, a report by the Herald-Mail Media says. The project would start in early February.

A gas study conducted in 2015 determined how much methane migrated from the landfill and recommended the mitigation system built. The system includes a trench that will be 20 feet deep and 25 feet long and vents that will stop the methane from the landfill to migrate onto neighboring properties and vent the gas into the air, the report says.

The trenches will be dug along the northern and eastern boundaries of the landfill, the report says. A mixture of bentonite clay will go into the trenches to act as a barrier to the gas and vents.

The Washington County Board of Commissioners recently voted to award the construction contract for the mitigation system to Stearns, Conrad and Schmidt Consulting Engineers (SCS Engineers), Long Beach, California, for $1,287,641.

Dave Mason, Washington County’s deputy director of environmental management, says in the report construction will begin in February and will last less than four months.