What steps do landfills take to accelerate decay?

Question

I would think salt and water to help rust but stuff that sinks in the ocean stays "undecayed" for decades.....

Answer 1

Unfortunately, landfills do not promote decay of their contents. Landfills _isolate_ their contents (with clay and plastic layers). In doing so they greatly slow down decomposition processes.

If you wanted a landfill to promote decay, you would want to allow good oxygen and water flow throughout. While it's easy to achieve those conditions with small quantities such as garden waste, large volumes present a much more difficult problem. The problem is compounded by undesirable materials in the landfill such as toxic compounds that could leach into the water table.

So, while encouraging decomposition is the _right_ thing to do, it becomes difficult in practice. The result is that we isolate the problem to minimize its impact (which leaves it for some future generation to deal with).

Answer 2

Actaully landfills are expected to be maintained by the waste management company for 30 years after they are closed. There is new tchnology that allows for water runoff and can accelerate the decay of the waste without the extensive environmental concerns and are able to put more waste in a landfill than before.