Detailed planning for the excavation of contaminated soil from the on-site landfill is currently underway.
Landfill planning
The site infrastructure originally included an on-site landfill which was initially licensed by the local authority and subsequently by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The requirement for a landfill was linked to the fact that waste emanating from Roche’s on-site manufacturing activities could not be sent to municipal landfills, hence it was placed in the landfill.
In 2006, a higher focus on recycling resulted in the landfill being capped and closed. Non-recyclable waste was sent to off-site waste management facilities designed specifically for handling waste generated from the site
When Roche announced its the decision to cease operations in Clarecastle and to fully remediate the site to enable it to have a sustainable future, the removal and remediation of waste deposited in the on-site landfill was an intrinsic part of this decision.
The landfill comprises seven (7) engineered cells where the waste was placed. It covers an area of approximately 24,000 sq. meters and contains an estimated 150,000 tonnes of waste, which will be removed during the remediation of this area. All the major activities associated with the remediation will be carried out in enclosures. Waste will be transported off-site in sealed containers as was done with AEC1.
Detailed planning for the remediation of the landfill is currently underway.
