Nitrogen removal from landfill leachate using a compact constructed wetland and the effect of chemical pretreatment

Onsite treatment of leachate was implemented at the Tveta Landfill, adjacent to the city of Sodertalje, Sweden. The system consists of leachate collection in a pond, precipitation of metals with chemicals, a constructed wetland, and forest irrigation. This article describes the constructed wetland and its effectiveness at removing ammonia in the system. Pulsed-discharge hydrology and wetland ecology formed the basis for the development of a compact constructed wetland (CCW). The system presented here has most design similarities with vertical sub-surface flow wetlands, though this system is run in batch mode. Chemically purified leachate and untreated leachate were applied to separate sections of the CCW using a filling and emptying schedule. A leachate treatment cycle of about 14 days duration was used, involving a 7 day submerged phase followed by a 7 day drained period. The removal efficiency varied between 40 and 75% on a mass basis. A maximum mass removal rate of up to 5.1 g m(-1) d(-1) was achieved in wetlands receiving leachate after chemical pretreatment. In wetlands receiving non-treated leachate a net release of up to 18 g m(-2) N occurred in the form of nitrate. This indicated a considerable nitrification but limited denitrification in those systems. It was unclear whether the chemical treatment enhanced the nitrogen removal efficiency because of lower toxicity and/or content of fewer competing cations, or other mechanisms. Mechanisms responsible for the NH4-N removal in the CCW system have to be further investigated.