Burnie Landfill Wetland
19 Jul 2017
Burnie City Council developed a state-of-the-art treatment wetland at the Burnie Waste Management Centre, on the north coast of Tasmania. The Burnie landfill wetland is constructed on top of a rehabilitated landfill cell. Groundwater seeping from the landfill (leachate) contains elevated levels of nutrients. The leachate is treated by the wetland, improving the quality of the water to the point that it can be safely released to the surrounding environment.
The Burnie landfill wetland has a number of benefits:
- Increasing environmental flows in nearby Cooee Creek;
- Reducing movement of groundwater from the landfill to the environment;
- Maximising the capacity of site stormwater and sewer infrastructure; and
- Improving the aesthetic and biodiversity values of the landfill site.
Construction of the wetland commenced in April 2016. Planting occurred over winter 2016 and construction was completed by late 2016. More details of the project are given here.