Polluting potential of solid waste final disposal in the waters of the hydrographic region of the Guanabara Bay basin – RJ

Abstract

The hydrographic region of the Guanabara Bay basin includes 17 municipalities in the state of Rio de Janeiro and among them are the largest solid waste generators in the state: São Gonçalo, Belford Roxo, Nova Iguaçu, Rio de Janeiro, and Duque de Caxias. Leachate, a highly toxic effluent, can cause several negative impacts on water bodies when improperly disposed of. This study, through a qualitative and quantitative approach, maps the areas used for the final disposal of solid waste within the hydrographic region of the Guanabara Bay basin and vulnerable water bodies which are potential receivers of leachate. Research was carried out analyzing legal documentation for sanitary and controlled landfills and dumps, reports of technical visits of the Leachate Work Group, data from the 2018 Ecological Imposto sobre Circulação de Mercadorias e Serviços (reduced state tax incentives) and other institutional documents related to the research object. It was observed that most of the municipalities in the hydrographic region of the Guanabara Bay basin closed their landfills within the last 10 years, driven by the National Solid Waste Policy, Ecological Imposto sobre Circulação de Mercadorias e Serviços and state government programs, such as the Pact for Sanitation (Rio + Clean and Zero Dump). Nevertheless, most of these closed sites do not have leachate treatment stations that meet the flow rate and thus continue producing leachate and discarding it into the water bodies of Guanabara Bay.