The Corrective Action/State Sites Section of the Hazardous Waste Remediation Bureau is also responsible for overseeing site investigation and groundwater permitting requirements associated with closure of the unlined landfills in the state. To date, approximately 200 unlined landfills (most of which are municipally-owned) have been identified, and the HWRB has developed a database to track the progress of each of the 200 sites through closure.

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Acworth Landfill Before	Concord Landfill Before
Sanbornton Landfill After	Concord Landfill After

The closure process begins with a site investigation (the process outlined in the Administrative Rules for Contaminated Site Management under Env-Or 600) to define the impact of the site on local groundwater and surface water quality. Also included are tasks designed to gather site-specific information to assess potential environmental and human health impacts unique to each site such as types of wastes historically disposed of on-site, sensitive receptors, and local groundwater users. At the conclusion of the site investigation process, each unlined landfill is expected to have a permanent water quality monitoring system in place. Typically, this will include several groundwater monitoring wells and surface water sampling stations. Site-specific data gathered during the site investigation process provide the basis for a closure design, which is unique to each site, and is intended to mitigate the environmental impacts associated with each site. At a minimum, the closure plan for an unlined landfill will typically involve an engineered capping system (compacted low-permeability soil, clay, or synthetic material), re-grading, engineered stormwater controls and development of a post-closure monitoring program to monitor the long-term performance of all closure system components. The water quality monitoring portion of the post-closure monitoring program is overseen by HWRB through issuance of the Groundwater Management Permit, which typically occurs following Department approval of the site investigation. Contact Peter Beblowski at (603) 271-2999 or e-mail at pbeblowski@des.state.nh.us .

The engineering design requirements and overall closure process is managed by the Solid Waste Compliance Section of WMD, who administer the NH Solid Waste Rules.