The Largest Landfill in America and how we can Reduce Pollution

The Largest Landfill in America and how we can Reduce Pollution

By: Jacob Michel

Terrible Trash at Puente Hills Landfill

It's about as tall of some of Los Angeles’s largest skyscrapers. It is the Puente Hills landfill, the largest in America. Every day, hundreds of garbage trucks come here to dump the garbage of Los Angeles. Most people take for granted how their garbage seemingly disappears from their curb. In fact, it doesn’t just disappear but comes right back into their house in the form of contaminated water in the form of water pollution. People don’t seem to notice how dangerous this practice that we have can be. Sure, there may be plastic sealant-like “membranes”, and machines that turn the odors into electricity, but pollution is still caused. This is because when the trash is dumped, it is not immediately covered up and sealed off. The trash-bulldozing equipment has to plow it into the landfill and sort through the trash. In that time, the trash is able to release dangerous gases such as Methane. Those gases are punching holes in the Ozone layer. The Ozone layer protects us from harmful rays of the sun. Not only do the gases pollute the air but also contaminate the soil and groundwater, right back to our homes. The toxic residue can still eat its way through the plastic membrane. We can reduce this by more reusing of materials such as simple things like use a plastic water bottle more than once. If we don’t stop this we will eventually destroy the Ozone layer. Hopefully we will be able to reuse more often so we don’t need giant landfills such as the one in Puente Hills.

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