When Yarmouth, MA, was required to close and cap its 40-year-old landfill, officials wanted something more than a tall, overgrown hill at the gateway to their community and adjacent to their golf course. With a little creativity and foresight, the town turned what had been an eyesore into a revenue-generating gem.

By John Kissida and Richard Spieler

A Revenue-Generating Plan
Maximizing Local Resources
Incorporating Closure Features Into the Course
Obtaining Public Approval
An Improved Drop-Off Facility
Put to Good Use

An aerial view of 100-plus ac. of disturbed land at the project's start.

The town of Yarmouth’s dump operated until 1991, when the town stopped accepting household waste in its 57-ac. landfill. Construction and demolition materials continued to be buried on the site until 1996, when Yarmouth was required to close the landfill in response to 1990 state and federal regulations and in accordance with a consent order.

The town began planning for a typical landfill closure until George Allaire, director of the town’s Department of Public Works, raised the potential reuse idea. While talking to the local golf course greenskeeper, Allaire discovered that the same amount of topsoil would be required for the golf course covering as for the landfill cover. That one common fact, along with the site’s location adjacent to the town’s highly successful municipal golf course, opened the door for the expansion of the Bayberry Hills Golf Course.

A Revenue-Generating Plan

Hole No. 9 features a lined pond that's a golf hazard, a capture basin for rainwater and parking lot water runoff, and a source for gold course irrigation water.

There seem to be no losers in reusing the land. In addition to creating a town recreation area, the golf course will financially benefit the town. In 15 years, the town will have paid off a $6-million, no-interest loan from the Massachusetts State Revolving Fund with revenue generated from the golf course. Future revenues will also offset the costs of the site and park maintenance.

"Closing the landfill according to Department of Environmental Protection guidelines costs $6 million," Allaire points out. "For $1.5 million more you can shape a golf course on top of it. You figure it out. You can drop $6 million that will be a drain on the community or you can build a golf course that will produce revenue."

Maximizing Local Resources

To maximize use of local resources, several cost- and time-saving strategies were developed for the landfill closure.

Master-Plan Development. To help town officials and residents visualize the site’s potential, a multifaceted reuse plan was developed, including a nine-hole golf course expansion, park improvements, a bike path, and a new solid waste-handling facility.

Homemade Topsoil. Early in the project, Yarmouth’s consultant, Camp Dresser & McKee Inc. (CDM), determined that the town’s yardwaste could be mixed with biosolids and naturally available sand to manufacture a low-cost, homemade topsoil to cover the landfill. Using the yardwaste for the manufacturing process saved the town from purchasing expensive topsoil. Today, area contractors are purchasing Yarmouth’s refined yardwaste as a component for capping other Massachusetts landfills, helping to offset Yarmouth’s solid waste management costs.

Soil Surcharge Program. To accelerate and monitor settlement, a soil surcharge program was developed. Site capping materials were purchased and placed in advance in green and tee areas, helping to accelerate settlement to maintain cap integrity and reduce long-term site maintenance costs.

Recycled Water for Irrigation. With drinking-water supplies stressed in the Cape Cod community, irrigation of the golf course’s new nine holes posed a big concern. The demand for an additional 18 million gal. to water the greens during the summer would put a significant strain on the community. To alleviate demands, CDM designed a reclaimed water system that used highly treated effluent from the adjacent Yarmouth-Dennis septage treatment plant as an irrigation source.

Incorporating Closure Features Into the Course

Landfill closure typically includes capping, passive methane gas collection, and surface-water controls. In Yarmouth’s case, required closure systems had to be integrated into the site’s new use as a golf course.

To ensure public health and safety, LFG is extracted from 40 wells within the landfill and piped to this LFG flare.

The site’s entire landfill as (LFG) collection system was installed belowground and coordinated with the course layout, avoiding high-use areas such as tees and greens. The 40 LFG extraction wells and controls were located in underground vaults that maximized the collection of gas and would not interfere with the play of the golf course. The methane gas collected from the wells is piped to a landfill flare at the edge of the course, where the gas is burned inside the cylinder without producing odor.

Stormwater control was also a necessity for the landfill closure. A lined pond was designed to recycle rainwater and control stormwater runoff from new parking lots and paved areas. The pond serves as an additional irrigation source for two golf course holes and adds to the project’s aesthetic value. Stormwater recharge basins were also strategically positioned around the landfill to re-create the natural/prelandfill recharge condition, maintain original groundwater characteristics, and create golf hazard features.

Obtaining Public Approval

Obtaining resident approval for the project was an easy sell, as many residents are avid golfers and fully supported adding nine holes to the existing golf course.

"Half of the tee times at the existing 18-hole golf course are reserved for paying customers, and that still does not accommodate all who wish to play," Allaire observes. "The capacity for golf in Yarmouth is exceeded by its residents’ demand."

The site features four sports fields at old Town House Road Park.

With plans for the golf course in place, the Board of Selectmen felt it was necessary to provide additional recreation facilities as well. To fill this need, CDM designed a multifaceted recreational complex adjacent to the landfill site, with athletic fields, a playground, bocce and basketball courts, horseshoe pits, and a multiuse path for biking, walking, and jogging. The path will potentially extend the existing Cape Cod Rail Trail bike path.

An Improved Drop-Off Facility

As part of the landfill site’s transformation, the town expanded its recycling and solid waste drop-off area, and a construction and demolition transfer station was built to better serve the community. These facilities were established in a new location, allowing recycling and solid waste disposal to continue uninterrupted while the new facilities were being constructed.

The facility was implemented in a design-build fashion using town forces for facility construction. It is more efficient than the former facility for customer drop-off and operational pick-up, as customers save time by bringing waste and process recyclables to the same location. The old site required users to back up to the drop-off point, making disposal awkward and clogging traffic. The new facility allows residents to parallel park next to the facility, unload their items, and pull away.

"Residents had to back up to toss their items at the old drop-off facility. With the new one, people can pull in and pull out, alleviating the traffic conflicts," Allaire notes. New access roads and rolloff container locations allow for easier transfer of the waste, avoiding awkward traffic within the site area. Visibility of the facility operations from the solid waste staff offices is also improved, allowing for fewer staff to monitor all operations.

Put to Good Use

The Bayberry Hills Golf Course expansion and Old Town House Road park held a grand opening in September 1999. The nine-hole golf course expansion, 12-ac. park, and 3-mi. bikeway have been enjoyed by residents - from kids playing soccer and softball, to parents playing with their children on the playground, to senior citizens utilizing the walking path. "The park is an incredibly overutilized facility, and that’s a good thing," Allaire remarks.

Golfers love the "new nine." The course was built as a "links-style" course, as no trees can be grown on top of the landfill because of the limited depth of soil above the landfill cap. "Some local golfers believe the new greens are better than the original golf course," adds Allaire.

Town officials are pleased with the recreational opportunities that the old landfill site is now providing. "These two facilities [the park and golf course] will become the anchor for improved recreational opportunities for our residents and visitors," states town administrator Robert C. Lawton Jr. "It is truly a wonderful project of which we can all be proud."

John Kissida, vice president, and Richard Spieler, project engineer, are with Camp Dresser & McKee Inc. in Cambridge, MA.

MSW
September/October 2000