EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION OF PROPERTIES OF DUMPED SOIL BY ADDING STEEL SLAG

Abstract

Illegal dumping of construction and demolition (C&D) waste is amajor source of waste soil and underground water pollution According to European Commission (2010), C&Dwaste amounts to about 35% of the total waste generatedEurope-wide. C&D waste dumped on bare ground, in forests andin scenic areas, also causes aesthetic damage to the naturallandscape As construction materials often containoil, solvents and fuel, these chemicals can leak into undergroundaquifers, thus contributing to underground water pollution. In addition, the combination of evaporationand heat can also cause forest fires starting at illegal C&D wastesites and resulting in the release of toxic gases into the atmosphere.Illegal dumping of construction waste also has economic implicationsassociated with waste cleaning and landscape restoration.In 2009 alone, local authorities in the UK spent around £45.8 millionon cleaning open areas from illegally dumped waste (Defra,2010). Accordingto Romeo et al. (2004), the City of San Antonioin the USA spends hundreds of millions of dollars every year tomitigate environmental consequences of illegal waste dumping, such as leaking of hazardous materials into underground water aquifers and forest fires.