Evaluation of environmental impacts from the municipal dump of Volta Redonda-RJ after its deactivation

Abstract

Due to the accelerated population growth in cities, especially in emerging countries, such as Brazil, the economically viable alternative to the final disposal of waste was the construction of landfills, popularly known as dumps. However, this type of waste disposal is not considered environmentally appropriate, as it may cause impacts on public health and the environment, such as: slurry production, highly toxic liquid, methane gas emission, attraction of disease vectors, among others. Legal provisions, such as TACs, and environmental impact assessment methods have been applied with the aim to minimize environmental impacts and enabling harmonic and healthy use of the degraded area for population and environment. In this sense, the objective of this work was to evaluate the environmental impacts from the municipal dump area of Volta Redonda, located in the interior of Rio de Janeiro State, to evaluate its environmental recovery. For this, interviews were carried out with technicians from the Municipal Environment Department, public environmental agencies, bibliographic survey of the study area and field visits at the site. It was verified that the dump operated from 1987 to 2012, generating significant environmental impacts in its area and not in its surroundings, such as eutrophication of the upstream lake, soil erosion and contamination of the Brandão River by mud. However, there were improvements at the site, such as regeneration of vegetation, restoration of fauna, especially birds, and facilities built and directed to environmental remediation.