Impact of municipal waste on mediterranean dry environments

We studied the physical characteristics and the main chemical components found in sealed municipal landfills in semi‐arid environments. This research was focused primarily on the identification of the main limiting factors for establishment and growth of plants on landfill surfaces, and the comparison of these factors with other soils in the area. Such information may be applicable to the future use of landfill sites. Variance analysis of our soil data showed that significant differences existed for 20 of the 36 parameters analyzed. The percentage of bare soil was much higher in landfills. Fine sand, silt, apparent density, and structural instability were greater in landfill covers than in other types of habitats. Field capacity and wilting point were low, and soil permeability to water was very low in the landfill covers. Electrical conductivity and pH were clearly higher in these environments, while organic matter and total N were much lower. Chloride, sulfate, fluoride, and sodium content were higher i...