Addressing Landfill Methane Emissions to Protect Public Health

What's the Problem?

In Colorado and across the country, solid waste landfills are hidden drivers of the climate crisis. Landfills emit vast amounts of the highly-potent greenhouse gas methane, which poses serious risks to all Coloradans by worsening air quality, increasing extreme weather events, and threatening vital resources. In addition to methane, landfills emit a series of health-harming pollutants such as nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, and toluene that directly harm the health of nearby communities.

Healthy Air & Water Colorado (HAWC) worked with our partners at Industrious Labs to release the Mountainous Methane: Science and Smart Solutions for Colorado to Lead on Landfills report highlighting the harm caused by landfills and lay out potential solutions. 

According to EPA estimates, landfills are the third-largest source of methane in the United States. Landfills emit an estimated 287 million metric tons of CO2e of methane per year on a 20-year global warming potential – the equivalent of 74 coal-fired power plants or more than 68 million cars on the road for a year.

Four out of five residents in Colorado live in the Front Range, home to some of the unhealthiest levels of air pollution in the state. The methane that seeps out of many landfills across this region compounds this air pollution and fuels our ground-level ozone crisis, threatening the health of our communities. Western slope communities are also impacted by many climate impacts fueled by methane pollution, like wildfire and drought. 

What's the Solution?

Healthy Air & Water Colorado is working alongside a coalition of community groups, environmental organizations, and industry experts to encourage the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment Air Quality Control Commission (AQCC) to adopt the strongest landfill methane rules in the nation. By adopting common-sense standards, we can deliver cleaner air across Colorado, protect the health of residents who live in the shadow of municipal solid waste landfills, and ensure our state remains a leader in climate change mitigation.

Our health professional Advocates have given public comment, elevated the issue in the news, and recently co-hosted in a webinar with our partners at Eco-Cycle. You can watch the full presentation here: