RR870 - Good control practice for workers' exposure to gases in landfill - Sampling and measurement report

Gases generated by decomposition of landfill contain, principally, methane and carbon dioxide, but may also contain hazardous concentrations of trace components. This project gathered information on the potential exposure of workers to these trace components during specific types of tasks, to provide evidence to develop guidance on good practice for the control of exposure. The study was conducted at six land fill sites identified as having the potential to generate high concentrations of three representative trace components, vinyl chloride, hydrogen sulphide and benzene. Comparisons of personal exposures were made with the levels found in the collected raw gas. The personal task based exposures (given the environmental conditions prevailing at the time monitoring was conducted) were insignificant for all three components and would not normally pose a health concern.

This report and the work it describes were funded by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Its contents, including any opinions and/or conclusions expressed, are those of the authors alone and do not necessarily reflect HSE policy.

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Updated 2021-04-23