Publications
Analysis of Vegetative on Six Different Landfill Cover Profiles in an Arid Environment
A large-scale field demonstration comparing final landfill cover designs was constructed and monitored at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Two conventional designs (a RCRA Subtitle 'D' Soil Cover and a RCRA Subtitle 'C' Compacted Clay Cover) were constructed side-by-side with four alternative cover test plots designed for arid environments. The demonstration was intended to evaluate the various cover designs based on their respective water balance performance, ease and reliability of construction, and cost. A portion of this project involves the characterization of vegetation establishment and growth on the landfill covers. The various prototype landfill covers were expected to have varying flux rates (Dwyer et al 2000). The landfill covers were further expected to influence vegetation establishment and growth, which may impact site erosion potential and long-term site integrity. Objectives of this phase were to quantify the types of plants occupying each site, the percentage of ground covered by these plants, the density (number of plants per unit area) of plants, and the plant biomass production. The results of this vegetation analysis are presented in this report.3 DRAFT07/06/14AcknowledgementsWe would like to thank all technical and support staff from Sandia and the USDA Forest Service's Rocky Mountain Station not included in the authors' list of this document for their valuable contributions to this research. We would also like to acknowledge the Department of Energy's Subsurface Contaminants Focus Area for funding this work.4