Using pilot test data to refine an alternative cover design in northern California

Two instrumented test sections were constructed in summer 1999 at the Kiefer Landfill near Sacramento, California to test the hydraulic performance of two proposed alternative final covers. Both test sections simulated monolithic evapotranspiration (ET) designs that differed primarily in thickness. Both were seeded with a mix of two perennial and one annual grass species. Oleander seedlings were also planted in the thicker test section. Detailed hydrologic performance monitoring of the covers was conducted from 1999 through 2005, The thicker test section met the performance criterion (average percolation of <3 mm/y). The thinner test section transmitted considerably more percolation (average of 55 mm/y). Both test sections were decommissioned in summer 2005 to investigate changes in soil hydraulic properties, geomorphology, and vegetation and to collect data to support a revised design. Field data from hydrologic monitoring and the decommissioning study were subsequently included in a hydrologic modeling study to estimate the performance of an optimized cover system for full-scale application. The decommissioning study showed that properties of the soils changed over the monitoring period (saturated hydraulic conductivity and water holding capacity increased, density decreased) and that the perennial grasses and shrubs intended for the cover were out-competed by annual species with shallower roots and lesser capacity for water uptake. Of these changes, reduced ET from the shallow-rooted annual vegetation is believed to be the primary cause for the high percolation rate from the thinner test section. Hydrologic modeling suggests that the target hydraulic performance can be achieved using an ET cover with similar thickness to the thin test section if perennial vegetation species observed in surrounding grasslands can be established. This finding underscores the importance of establishing and maintaining the appropriate vegetation on ET covers in this climate.