Remediation and Excavation of the Hazardous Waste Landfill Site of Kölliken/Switzerland

The responsibility for operations lies with a Consortium having a government participation of 91 %. After repeated complaints from the neighbourhood about unpleasant odours and dust emission, the municipality of Kölliken ordered a temporary closure of the landfill in 1985. In the investigation that followed, it was found that the base of the clay quarry was more porous than originally assumed, and that effluent contamination from the landfill presented a threat for the groundwater aquifer of the area. A reopening of the landfill was thus no longer an option; more importantly, it was clear that a thorough remediation could not be avoided.