New data reveals waste emission sources, trends

Data from a Montreal-based space and technology company, GHGSat’s satellite constellation, has revealed trends in waste emission sources, providing landfill operators with insights to address methane and design gas capture systems. 

GHGSat’s data was published in a peer-reviewed Nature paper by authors from GHGSat, the Space Research Organization Netherlands (SRON) Institute for Space Research and MIT. 

Key findings 

The researchers found no correlation between emissions estimates and satellite measurements, with traditional methods of estimating emissions yielding different results from the actual satellite measurements. GHGSat says this indicates significant gaps in the global understanding of landfill methane. 

Drawing 1,500 observations from 151 waste disposal sites in 47 countries, the study showed that measured emissions were significantly smaller or larger than what estimates indicate. GHGSat says the findings point toward a need to integrate measurement tools into emissions models to generate a more accurate understanding of emissions.   

Landfill activity and new emissions  

GHGSat’s satellite data showed a link between landfill surface activity and new emissions, as the observations pinpointed the origins of emissions.

For example, in a landfill near Casablanca, the emission sources showed a migration of emissions as new sections of the landfill were developed. The company says this insight can be used to effectively design landfill gas capture programs.  

Methane emissions  

The scale of the study compared emissions across different types of landfills. Researchers classified the waste disposal sites in the study into two categories, managed landfills, which have organized structures to bury waste, and dumping sites, where waste distribution is more informal. Results showed that methane emissions per square kilometer from managed landfills were lower than those from dumping sites.    

“The insights from this new research deepen a global understanding of landfill methane,” GHGSat CEO Stephane Germain says. “With the size of GHGSat’s satellite constellation, we are able to collect data at the scale needed to provide valuable analysis for operators, supporting them to understand and address landfill methane and design impactful, profitable gas capture systems that transform methane from waste into an energy resource.”   

For the waste sector, GHGSat says mitigating methane emissions represents an opportunity to benefit the environment while also generating additional revenue through landfill gas capture projects.  

Captured methane from decomposing waste in landfills can be converted into biogas or renewable energy gas, which can be sold as fuel or used onsite for power generation. This can create new revenue streams for landfill operators and reduce energy costs.