Powering advanced leachate treatment by capturing heat from landfill waste

At a Glance

  • 1.4M

    Gallons/Yr Peak Flow

  • 7.5

    Acre Geothermal Loop

  • $17M

    Construction Cost

Location
St. Louis County, Minnesota
Offices
Client
  • St. Louis County, MN
Partners
  • Northeast Technical Services, Inc.

St. Louis County Landfill Leachate Treatment and Geothermal System Design

St. Louis County in Minnesota is pioneering an innovative approach to sustainability in their regional landfill to help address challenging environmental issues. They engaged us to develop resilient solutions for a new landfill leachate treatment facility, to help prevent harmful substances from leaching into the land and groundwater.

Our environmental and buildings engineering teams designed this new leachate treatment facility. Along with helping prevent per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as forever chemicals, from entering the environment, it will help remove other contaminants from the landfill leachate. During the planning process for this facility, we recognized an opportunity to harness heat generated by the nearby landfill’s decomposing waste—an energy source that is largely unused in this industry. We designed a landfill-based geothermal system, incorporating geothermal piping into the lining of the landfill. As the waste in the landfill decomposes, it produces heat, which is recovered by the geothermal piping in the lining system. The system is expected to produce enough heat for 50 three-bedroom homes per year. This energy captured by the geothermal system will heat the new treatment facility and be used in the treatment processes.

There are only a handful other landfill-based geothermal system projects in the world, and this is the first project of its kind in Minnesota. With these innovative techniques, St. Louis County is helping address the dual challenges of climate change and PFAS contamination of wastewater. 

At a Glance

  • 1.4M

    Gallons/Yr Peak Flow

  • 7.5

    Acre Geothermal Loop

  • $17M

    Construction Cost

Location
St. Louis County, Minnesota
Offices
Client
  • St. Louis County, MN
Partners
  • Northeast Technical Services, Inc.