Design and Construction of a Geosynthetic Cover System for the Final Closure of a Municipal Solid Waste Landfill in Ghana, West Africa

An innovative geosynthetic cover system, consisting of the ClosureTurf system, was used for the final closure of a municipal solid waste (MSW) landfill in Ghana, West Africa. The ClosureTurf system is a three-layered soil-geosynthetic-turf product comprised of: (1) structured geomembrane; (2) nonwoven geotextile with high-density polyethylene glass blades as an engineered turf; and (3) sand infill ballast. This product was used as an innovative alternative final cover system in a design-build contract for the final closure of the MSW landfill as part of efforts to improve the overall environmental infrastructure in the country. The landfill is also the first in Africa, and one of the few landfills outside the US, to be closed using the ClosureTurf system. This paper presents the design and construction of the innovative geosynthetic final cover system under an aggressive schedule of a design-build contract dictated by the socio-economic political climate in the country during that period. Challenges and lessons learned during construction are also discussed.