Integrating leachate treatment into circular economy landfill practices for nutrient, energy, and material (NEM) recovery and climate change mitigation

Landfills contain valuable resources that can be recovered and recycled, contributing to a circular economy (CE). This article provides a critical review of landfill management techniques and its potential for climate change mitigation in the waste sector and identifies challenges, opportunities, and the potential of nutrient, energy, and material (NEM) recovery from landfills. This work also uncovers research gaps and the needs of unlocking synergies between CE-based landfill management and climate change mitigation through NEM recovery. A conceptual framework that integrates NEM recovery into landfill management based on CE principles and waste hierarchy is also presented. It is evident from a literature survey of 205 articles that CE-based landfill management (CEBLM) is a novel approach to minimize waste generation and maximize resource recovery from landfills. CEBLM can potentially unlock synergies between environmental protection, resource efficiency, and climate action simultaneously. CEBLM scenarios have the potential to decrease greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 56–95% in comparison to typical open dumps, and they have the capability to produce 0.8–3.2 kWh of energy and 0.4–1.6 kWh/ton heat of garbage. Additionally, they can recover 48% of metals, 32% of plastics, and 16% of glass from the landfill waste. Overall, integrating leachate treatment within CE landfill practices not only enables effective nutrient, energy, and material recovery but also offers a sustainable pathway for mitigating climate change impacts. This approach underscores the potential of innovative waste management strategies to contribute to environmental resilience and resource efficiency.