t"
39-44, 1997
PII: S0269-7491
ELSEVIER
INFLUENCE OF LANDFILL FACTORS ON PLANTS A N D SOIL
F A U N A A N ECOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
Y. S. G. Chan, a L. M. C h u b and M. H. W o n g a
aDepartment of Biology, Hong Kong Baptist University, Kowloon Tong. Hong Kong
hDepartment of Biology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong
(Received 7 April 1997; accepted 4 June 1997)
Abstract
An ecological study was conducted on two landfill sites in
Hong Kong. Both sites were contaminated by landfill gas
and leachate, as indicated by the high concentrations of
CH4 and C02 and the presence of high concentration of
NH4-N in the cover soil layer. Their plant diversity and
performance, as well as the soil and litter animals, were
compared with three derelict sites as references. The
landfill sites had higher plant coverage and plant diversity,
and higher densities of soil and litter animals than the
reference sites. Similarly, the microbial activities at the
landfill sites were higher than those at reference sites. The
results showed that the landfill sites possessed an effective
food web, starting from microbes to macroinvertebrates.
Woodland establishment seems feasible at these landfill
sites, and natural succession appears to take place at a
higher rate at these landfill sites when compared with the
reference sites. © 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd
Keywords: Landfill gas, landfill leachate, soil arthro-
pods, litter animals, soil microbial activity.
INTRODUCTION
Landfilling is a method of disposing of municipal wastes
on land with minimal nuisance to public health or
safety. Before a completed site is closed, the final layer
of cover soil is usually revegetated for erosion control
and amenity purposes. When a completed site is to be
developed into recreational facilities or publicly accessi-
ble green space, additional vegetation is also planted.
In Hong Kong, 16 landfill sites have been operating
since 1973 and 12 of them are closed (EPD, 1996). As
urban areas expand in size, most of these completed
landfill sites are now situated within urban areas. Since
land is scarce in Hong Kong, these completed landfill
sites, having a total size of 295ha and equivalent to
about 2% of the total urban area ( ~ 17 000 ha), become
very attractive for redevelopment. The Hong Kong
Government is going to restore these old landfill sites
into parks, golf courses or similar facilities for the pub-
lic (EPD, 1995).
It has been suspected that root growth of trees may
penetrate and damage the landfill cap, causing leakage
39
Environmental Pollution, Vol. 97, No. 1-2, pp.
© 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd
All rights reserved. Printed in Great Britain
(97)00082-1 0269-7491/97 $17.00+0.00
of landfill gas and seepage of leachate. However, recent
findings indicate that ordinary tree growth will not
damage the landfill cap, especially for sites where an
additional layer of soil is placed on top for plant growth
(Dobson and Moffat, 1993). Another concern is that
even if a layer of landfill cap is placed on top of the
landfill, landfill gas migration and leachate seepage may
still happen. It has been reported that landfill gas may
affect tree growth on landfill sites (Leone et al., 1982;
Wong 1988; Wong and Yu, 1989b) while leachate con-
tamination may result in high mortality rates of trees
(Menser et al., 1983, Wong and Leung, 1989).
Regardless of the difficulty of planting trees in com-
pleted landfills, landfill operation will result in the
destruction of the existing vegetation and the natural
balance that has been established between plants and
animals within the habitat. Such disturbance to the
natural balance is more pronounced for landfills devel-
oped on undisturbed ground or agricultural land. There
is a need, in the ecological perspective, to reconstruct
the ecosystems on these disturbed sites. The purpose is
to enhance the vegetation succession, and to build up a
balance between soil and litter fauna for nutrient cycling
in these man-made habitats.
An ecological study was conducted on two Hong
Kong landfill sites (one with a relatively severe gas and
leachate problem while the other was less affected by gas
and leachate) which aimed at investigating the interac-
tion between edaphic factors under landfill conditions,
with special emphases on plant performance and diver-
sity, and soil and litter fauna at the sites. The feasibility of
woodland establishment at the sites was also examined.
MATERIALS AND M E T H O D S
Field sites
Two landfill sites in Hong Kong were chosen as the field
sites: Shuen Wan and Junk Bay Stage I. Their areas
were 95 and 48 ha, respectively. Field surveys were con-
ducted only on areas of the landfills with the cover soil
that had laid for about 3 years. The cover soil was about
0.5 m in depth; no additional substrate layer was laid for
vegetation development. Natural colonization of plants
was established within these 3 years. Shuen Wan Landfill
40 Y. S. G. Chanet al.
was a coastal site while Junk Bay Landfill was devel-
oped on an undisturbed hill slope. Three reference sites
in Hong Kong were chosen: Yuen Chau Kok, Tai Po
and Lok Wo Sha. Their cover soils were similar to those
on the landfill sites, which were mostly decomposed
granite and which were compacted by machinery to a
similar degree. Both Yuen Chau Kok and Tai Po
Industrial City were reclaimed from the sea and Lok
Wo Sha was abandoned farmland. All reference sites
had been left unattended for at least 3 years and were
awaiting civil development.
Vegetation survey
Fifty random quadrats (0.5×0.5m) were studied on
each of the landfill sites. All vascular plant species found
within the quadrats were identified and grouped under
woody plants, herbs and grasses with their percentage
covers recorded. Similar vegetation surveys were con-
ducted on the reference sites.
Collection and analysis of soil and litter samples
From each of the landfill and reference site, the first five
quadrats laid down were chosen for intensive soil and lit-
ter analysis. Three blocks of cover soil sample
( 1 0 x l 0 x l 0 c m (wxlxd)) were collected for soil animal
extraction and for chemical analysis. All litter within the
quadrats was collected for animal extraction and litter
biomass determination. Samples of soil and litter were
sealed within polythene bags, placed in a portable ice-
chest and transferred to the laboratory for analyses. The
bulk density of the cover soil was determined on the site by
excavating method according to Blake and Hartge (1986).
Under the laboratory conditions, soil and litter ani-
mals were extracted from 150 g of soil or 20 g of litter by
Tullgren funnels (Cox, 1976). Extracted animals were
preserved in alcohol for further identification and
counting. After being air-dried for 2 weeks, soil samples
were tested for the following items: organic carbon
(Walkley-Black method; Nelson and Sommers, 1982);
total nitrogen and total phosphorus (semi-micro Kjel-
dahl and Mo Blue methods; Bremner and Mulvaney,
1982; Olsen and Sommers, 1982); extractable ammo-
nium (extracted by 2M KC1, indophenol blue method;
Allen, 1989b; Keeney and Nelson, 1982; Selmer-Olsen,
1971); extractable nitrate (colorimetrical analysis by a
flow-injection autoanalyser, Lachat Model AE after
KCI extraction; Allen, 1989a,b; Keeney and Nelson,
1982); exchangeable-P, K and Mg (ammonium acetate
extraction, Mo Blue method and flame absorption
spectroscopy; Allen, 1989a), and dehydrogenase activity
(Tabatabai, 1994).
Gas monitoring
Portable sub-surface gas monitoring probes were modi-
fied according to the Department of the Environment
(UK) (1994) for the collection of soil gas under field
conditions. Each probe was fabricated from a steel pipe,
65cm long, with 2.5cm outer diameter and 1.5cm
internal diameter. The lower 15 cm of each probe was
perforated for gas movement between soil and the
internal core. In the study sites, gas probes were inserted
50 cm deep into the soil by a hammer for gas sampling;
therefore, all results corresponded to the gas content at
a depth of 35-50cm soil depth. Gas samples were col-
lected by sealed 10ml glass gas samplers and quantified
in the laboratory within 8 h after sampling. A Hewlett-
Packard 5890 Series II gas chromatograph with a CTR I
gas column from Alltech Associates, Inc., USA was
used for the separation of CH4, CO2, 02 and N2. Gas
peaks were quantified by a software, ChemStation,
developed by Hewlett-Packard.
RESULTS
Gas contents
Only trace amounts of CH4 (mean = 0.416% v v -1) and
low levels of CO2 (1.81%) were detected on the refer-
ence sites (Table 1). The concentrations of CH4 and
CO2 at the cover soil of the two landfill sites were high
(CH4: Junk Bay, 11.7%; Shuen Wan, 4.18%; CO2: Junk
Bay 11.3%; Shuen Wan, 3.76%). The 02 concentration
in the reference soils (18.4%) was close to the ambient
air (20.9%) while the 02 concentrations in landfill cover
soil (Junk Bay, 10.9%; Shuen Wan, 16.8%) were mark-
edly lower than the ambient air.
Soil properties
The chemical properties of landfill cover soil was het-
erogeneous, as indicated by the high standard devia-
tions in the results of most of the soil physical and
chemical analyses (Table 1). However, the concentra-
tions of total-N and NH4-N of Junk Bay cover soil were
significantly higher (p < 0.05) than those of the reference
sites. The concentrations of total-N, NH4-N and NOa-N
of Shuen Wan cover soil were lower than that at the
Junk Bay but higher than that at the reference sites.
Similarly, the dehydrogenase activity at Junk Bay was
the highest and the activity at the reference sites was the
lowest. No significant difference (p > 0.05) was found in
organic carbon, total-P and exchangeable-K between all
sites. The cover soil of both the reference and landfill
sites had been compacted by machinery to similar bulk
density of about 1.4-1.5 gcm -3.
Vegetation survey and analysis
The results of the vegetation survey are shown in Table 2
where the plants are grouped under woody plants, herbs
and grasses. Seventeen species of vascular plants were
found at the reference sites; whereas 25 and 20 species,
respectively, were found at the two landfill sites. The
gross average coverage of plants at the reference sites
(57.8%) was lower than that at the two landfill sites
(70.3%, 61.4%). Tree cover on the landfill sites was
dominated by two species: Acacia confusa and Leucaena
leucocephala. They represented the majority of trees
taller than breast height (1.3 m) on the two landfills. On
the reference sites, only L. leucocephala was found with
mature individual trees taller than breast height. Other
small leguminous woody plants (< 1.3 m tall) found at
 Ecology of landfill sites 41

Table 1. Gas composition, physico-chemical properties and microbial activities of soil samples in the study sites
Determinand Junk Bay Shuen Wan Reference sites
Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD
Gaseous composition
CH4 (% vv -1) 11.7 :/: 14.7 4.18 • 3.81 0.416 ± 0.721
CO2 (% vv -I) 11.3 :t: 11.4 3.76 ± 4.32 1.81 :t: 2.86
02 (% vv -~) 10.9 ± 9.02 16.8 + 4.4 18.4 i 2.57
N2 (% vv -~) 65.4 + 19.6 73.7 :i: 9.3 76.6 ± 2.23
Physical properties
Temperature (°C) 33.9 + 4.06a 32.4 :t: 1.Sa 31.4 ± 1.4a
Bulk density (gem -3) 1.51 :t: 0.16a 1.38 ± 0.15a 1.42 ± 0.1 la
Chemical compositions
pH 6.54 + 1.05a 7.00 ± 0.34a 6.85 ~: 0.23a
TotaI-N (%) 0.246 i 0.217a 0.167 + 0.165a 0.026 + 0.009b
NH4-N (mgg i) 1.99 + 1.20a 1.15 ± 0.77a,b 0.285 + 0.030b
NO3-N (mgg -l) 0.296 + 0.241a 0.745 • 0.461a ND
Total-P (%) 0.034 + 0.026a 0.028 ± 0.012a 0.024 ± 0.017a
Organic carbon (%) 1.81 ± 1.27a 1.37 ± 1.1 la 0.261 ± 0.116a
Exchangeable-P (#g g-J) 28.5 :t: 15.1a 3.00 ± 0.51b 4.86 :L 3.65b
Exchangeable-K (/zg g-l) 172 i 74a 129 ± 107a 41.9 i 19.2a
Exchangeable-Mg (/zg g-l) 37.8 ~: l 1.4a 38.0 ± l 1. I a 16.4 ± 4.7b
Microbial activity
Dehydrogenase (/zg TPFg -I) 93.1 + 61.1a 76.6 J: 50.8a,b 14.6 ± 3.65b
Same letters on the same horizontal row indicate no significant difference (p < 0.05).
ND = non detectable.

the reference and landfill sites were Mimosa pudica,
Alysicarpus vaginalis, Atylosia scarabaeoides and Sesba-
nia cochinchinensis. Legumes represented 77, 56 and
95% of plant cover at the Junk Bay, Shuen W a n and
reference sites, respectively. As with the gross vegetation
cover, litter on ground at the landfill sites was higher
than at the reference sites (p ==0.051).
Both the results of Jaccard's and Czekanowski's
coefficients of plant community and index o f percentage
similarity (Westman, 1985) indicated that the two land-
fill sites were similar to one another in terms of plant
diversity and performance but were different from the
reference sites (Table 3).
Distribution and diversity of soil and animal fauna
N o significant difference (p >0.05) was found in soil
animal density a m o n g any order/group of animals
between any sites (Table 4). This would be partly due to
the heterogeneity in the physical properties and chemi-
cal composition of the soil at the landfill sites, which
caused a high variation in animal inhabitation at differ-
ent areas. However, the gross soil animal density in
landfill sites were three to five times higher than in the
reference sites. The Shannon-Wiener diversity index
(Cox, 1976) of soil fauna at the landfill sites was also
higher than that of the three reference sites. The gross
density o f litter fauna at the landfill sites was also higher
than at the reference sites (Table 5).
DISCUSSION
The influence of landfill gas and landfill leachate
It was obvious that the two landfill sites have a landfill
gas problem at the cover soil level (11.7 and 4.18%
CH4). The amounts of landfill gas, as reflected by the
concentrations of CH4 and CO2 at Junk Bay were
higher than those at Shuen Wan. In the presence of
landfill gas, plant growth would be suppressed (Gilman
et al., 1981; Wong and Yu, 1989b). Carbon dioxide is
the major active component of landfill gas in affecting
the growth pattern of roots ( C h a n e t al., 1991). How-
ever, tolerant plants may develop various mechanisms
to adapt to the adverse gaseous conditions in landfill
cover soil, such as high tolerance to CO2 (Carr, 1961),
or they could supply 02 to the soil rhizosphere (Schnoor
et al., 1995).
The relatively high concentrations of NH4-N in the
cover soil of the two landfill sites, especially in Junk
Bay, is an indication of leachate contamination, as high
NH4-N is a c o m m o n characteristic of landfill leachate
(Robinson, 1991). However, the presence of an optimal
level of leachate in cover soil m a y be beneficial for plant
growth, especially for those growing on arid soil (Cure-
ton et al., 1991; Ettala, 1987; G o r d o n et al., 1989).
The growth of legumes and other plants
In the presence of landfill gas and leachate contamina-
tion, the vegetation performance at the two landfill sites
was better than at the reference sites, as indicated by the
gross coverage of plants at all sites. The results of coef-
ficients of plant community showed that the two landfill
sites were similar to each other but different from the
reference sites, suggesting the presence of landfill gas
and leachate has created a different habitat that might
limit certain plant species in growing on landfills.
Legumes, which can fix dinitrogen from their ambient
environment and are especially suited for growth on
arid soil, were dominant in all the studied reference and
landfill sites. However, the presence of landfill factors
42 Y . S . G . Chan et al.

Table 2. Plant coverage and litter on ground at the field sites Table 3. Coefficients of plant community and index of
percentage similarity among the studied habitats
Junk Shuen Reference
Bay Wan sites Coefficients of Index of
plant community percentage
Woody plants similarity (%)
Family Caesalpiniaceae Jaccard's Czekanowski's
Cassia rnirnosoides 0.07 Index (%) Index (%)
Family Mimosaceae (legumes)
Acacia confusa 24.8 6.6 Junk Bay 36 53 46
Leucaena leucocephala 1.9 0.4 0.07 --Shuen Wan
Minrnosa pudica 8.5 Junk Bay 20 33 9.4
Family Papilionaceae (legumes) --reference sites
Alysicarpus vaginalis 0.5 13.1 Shuen Wan 19 32 9.8
A tylosia scarabaeoides 3.7 --reference sites
Sesbania cochinchinensis 0.7
Family Passiforaceae
Passiflora foetida 2.4 2.8
Family Malvaceae might also limit sensitive legumes in growing on the
Urena lobata 2.6 landfill sites. Acacia confusa and Leucaena leucocephala
Family Rubiaceae
Paederia scandens 0.2 seemed especially suited for growth and were abundant
Family Verbenaceae on landfill sites while Alysicarpus vaginalis, Atylosia
Vitex negundo 2.0 scarabaeoides and Sesbania cochinchinensis were found
Lantana carnara 2.9 0.8 mostly on the derelict reference sites. Mimosa pudica, a
Shrub A 1.3
small leguminous weed which is commonly found in
Herbs and grasses most rural places in Hong Kong (Thrower, 1976), was
Family Amaranthaceae found only in the reference sites. Presumably M. pudica
Achyranthes aspera 2.52 0.40
Alternanthera sessilis 0.30 is sensitive to landfill factors; therefore, it was not found
Family Compositae in the Junk Bay and Shuen Wan landfill sites and was
Ageratum conyzoides 1.1 0.40 also rarely found on any of the landfill sites in Hong
Bidens bipinnata O.12 Kong (authors' observation).
Bidens pilosa 0.20 1.1 0.30
Blurnea sp. 0.54
Conyza canadensis 0.42 Soil and fitter fauna
Mikania guaco 7.0 Insects of Orders Hemiptera, Lepidoptera, Diptera,
Wedelia trilobata 2.8 Hymenoptera and Coleoptera found in the soils of both
Family Solanaceae
Solanum nigrum 1.0 1.6 the reference and landfill sites were mainly in their larval
Family Convolvulaceae or nymphal stages. The results indicate that landfill
Ipornoea batatas 3.0 cover soil can support a diverse soil fauna, which can
lpornoea cairica 7.9
Ipornea obscura 0.12 2.3 0.90 play an active role in the food web, compared with the
Family Oxalidaceae reference sites. Similarly, the relatively higher density
Oxalis corniculata 0.24 and diversity of centipedes, millipedes, ticks and mites
Family Commelinaceae in landfill cover soil also made up a more diversified
Cornmelina sp. 1.0
Family Cyperaceae food web on the landfill sites. These non-insect arthro-
Firnbristylis sp. 1.0 pods are saprophagous and phytophagous in general,
Family Grammineae which are important in the decay of organic remains of
Cynodon dactylon 24.1 16 2.0 vegetation (Newman, 1988). Insects found in the litter
Digitaria adscendens 5.0 1.2
Digitaria violascens O.1 on the ground were mainly adults, such as those which
Digitaria sp. 1.3 1.4 18 belong to the Orders Hemiptera, Thysanoptera, Dip-
Eleusine indica 5.8 1.8 tera, Hymenoptera and Coleoptera. They are generally
Irnperata cylindrica 1.8 more active and mobile than their larval or nymphal
lschaemum aristatum 0.3
Panicurn rnaxirnurn 2.3 stages and are more effective in dispersing fungal
Paspalurn distichurn 1.8 spores. This plays an important role in enhancing the
Paspalum orbiculare 0.6 biodegradation of the litter in landfills (Wong et al.,
Paspalurn sp. 3.0 1992).
Rhynchelytrurn repens 1.2
Saccharurn arundinaceurn 10.4 0.9 The uniqueness of the landfill environment also leads
Mean coverage (%) 35.3 12.6 27.4 to a difference in soil and litter fauna when compared
of woody plants with the reference sites. Termites and barklice were only
Mean coverage (%) 35.0 48.8 30.4
of herbs and grasses found on the Shuen Wan Landfill which received
Gross average coverage (%) 70.3 61.4 57.8 domestic waste, a great proportion of which was paper
Total number of species 25 20 17 and timber waste. The landfill cover may accidentally be
Litter on ground 240 246 99.2 mixed with the embedded wastes during the landfill
(fresh weight, g m-2) *
operation, a process which supported the growth of
*The p value among the treatment groups is 0.051, by chi- termites and barklice. Junk Bay Landfill accepted waste
square approximation. mainly from the industrial sectors, which had less wood
 Ecology of landfill sites 43

Table 4. Density (No. m -3) of soil fauna at the field sites Natural succession of vegetation only takes place in
Taxonomic group Junk Shuen Reference such niches where a balanced food web and efficient
Bay Wan sites nutrient cycling had developed. The overall results of
this study provided evidence that such balance was
Insects
found on the two landfill sites. Moreover, the landfill
Collembola 63 400 27 000 40 500
Isoptera 0 1730 0 sites have stable communities of different organisms.
Psocoptera 0 3680 1340 Plant cover and diversity on the landfill sites were better
Hemiptera 0 437 0 than those at the reference sites. The above ground litter
Thysanoptera 923 0 0 on the two landfill sites supported a relatively diversified
Lepidoptera 1680 0 0 and balanced litter fauna, as indicated by the relatively
Diptera 6140 1000 1460
Hymenoptera 1650 9280 2100 higher diversity index.
Coleoptera 1960 4270 3420

Others CONCLUSION
Nematoda 0 7650 6770
Oligochaeta 0 591 0
Chilopoda 224 0 0 The present work indicates that landfill sites are a
Diplopoda 3940 0 0 unique environment in which the cover soil may possess
Isopoda 32 900 16 100 797 a high landfill gas content and can be contaminated by
Acarina 20 400 ! 0 300 1190 landfill leachate. However, these may not necessary be
limiting factors suppressing the bioactivity and growth
Gross density 317000 176000 68300
(No. m -3) of plants, microbes and animals. The results provide
Shannon-Wiener 2.092 2.749 1.597 evidence that landfill cover soil possessed an effective
diversity index food web, starting from saprobic microbes to macroin-
vertebrates such as insects and arthropods. Therefore,
completed landfill sites can be good habitats which
fibre in its composition; therefore, no termite or bark- support a variety of plants and animals, provided that
louse was found. the plants or animals can tolerate landfill gas, leachate
contamination and other adverse landfill factors.
Nutrient cycles Legumes seem to be good pioneers for revegetating
High dehydrogenase activity is an indication of active completed landfill sites.
populations of microbes (Tabatabai, 1994). The dehy-
drogenase activities of soil samples from the two landfill
sites were 13-18 times higher than those from the refer- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
ence sites (p < 0.05). This indicated that the gross micro-
bial activity, or the bioconversion of different forms of The authors would like to thank Ms K P Yeung for
organic matter, was high in the landfill cover soil. technical support. This project was supported by the
Research G r a n t Council of the University Grants
Table 5. Density (No. m -2) of litter fauna at the field sites Committee of H o n g Kong.
Junk Shuen Reference
Bay Wan sites
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