Landfill Mining
This concept was initiated at The European Enhanced Landfill Mining Consortium (EURELCO). The basic process combines the excavation/mining to recover the buried resources in a Landfill site, paired with remediation of the land, where the economic benefits are large enough to out-way the cost associated with the work. Scale is often a key factor, with larger landfills being more economical than smaller ones[1], as is the age and nature of waste previously deposited (and the amount and value of the materials that can be recovered) and the value of the land once remediated.
This process is currently being demonstrated by two flagship projects where the European Commission has provided funding through its Horizon 2020 Programme along with ETN NEW‐MINE (for municipal solid waste) and METGROW+ (for industrial waste)[1].
Although being a relatively new initiative, by the end of 2025, European member states will be required to “map existing landfills and indicate their potential for enhanced landfill mining and share information”. This is due to the process having a range of positive outcomes including the reclamation of valuable resources and land[1].