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CHAPTER 2
Characteristics of landfill gas
2.1 INTRODUCTION
Municipal waste deposited in non-hazardous landfills usually contains about 50% of organic
matter, which is generally susceptible to microbial degradation. Commonly applied waste
compaction which aims at the reduction of their volume, as well as the use of barriers insu-
lating the mass of waste from the environment favor the creation of anaerobic conditions. In
such conditions, consortia of fermenting microorganisms are developing. They use organic
compounds or intermediate products of their decomposition, contained in waste, as electron
acceptors in the process of energy production. This group includes the microorganisms that
produce methane. A large group are also sulfur bacteria, ...