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Landfill Volume Calculator

Work out landfill volume instantly with clear inputs, formula shown and shareable results.

About Landfill Volume Calculator

Landfill capacity is measured in airspace, which must cover both waste and daily cover material. 45,000 tonnes a year compacted to 850 kg/m3 over twenty years is 1.06 million cubic metres of waste, rising to 1.22 million with 15% cover - about 8.1 hectares at 15 m depth. Better compaction directly extends site life.

Formulas

Waste volume

volume = tonnes x 1000 / compacted density x years

Total airspace

airspace = waste volume x (1 + cover ratio)

Worked example

With the default values below, Landfill Volume Calculator returns Total Airspace Required of 1.21765 × 10⁶. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.

Inputs used

Annual waste receivedminimum 0 t
45,000 t
Compacted waste densityminimum 0 kg/m3
850 kg/m3
Design lifeminimum 0 years
20 years
Daily cover as a share of waste volumeaccepts 0–100 %
15 %

Results

Total Airspace Required
1.21765 × 10⁶ m3
Waste Volume Excluding Cover
1.0588 × 10⁶ m3
Airspace Consumed Per Year
60,882 m3
Footprint At 15 Metres Depth
8.12 ha

Step by step

  1. 1Values used
  2. 2Waste volume
  3. 3Total airspace
  4. 4Total Airspace Required= 1,217,650.00000 m3
  5. 5Waste Volume Excluding Cover= 1,058,820.0000 m3
  6. 6Airspace Consumed Per Year= 60,882 m3
  7. 7Footprint At 15 Metres Depth= 8.12 ha

Assumptions and limits

  • The result is derived only from the 4 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
  • In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, tax or fees or charges into account.
  • Figures are rounded for display to 5 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.

How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does compaction density matter so much?

Because airspace is the scarce asset. Raising density from 700 to 900 kg/m3 extends site life by more than 25%.

What is daily cover for?

Controlling litter, odour, vermin and fire. It consumes 10-20% of airspace unless alternative cover materials or tarpaulins are used.

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