Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and -furans (PCDDs AND PCDFs) in municipal waste landfill fires

Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin and dibenzofuran samples were collected from two waste landfill fires. The first fire was ignited at the experimental field built on a municipal waste landfill, and another municipal waste landfill caught fire spontaneously during the landfill fire test. Air samples were collected five meters from the center of the fire, representing diluted smoke in the breathing zone. After these fires, burnt waste samples were collected in the vicinity of the fire centers. The PCDD/PCDF concentrations in the working air during the active fire were from 51 to 427 pg(TE)/m3. During the fires, the acceptable daily intake value of PCDD/Fs was exceeded at both sites. The toxic congener profiles were similar to those detected in municipal solid waste incinerators. The PCDD/PCDF concentrations in the burnt waste samples at the experimental site were surprisingly low, 4–87 pg(TE)/g, but at the site of the real landfill fire the concentrations were higher, 106–290 pg(TE)/g, which is due to the slightly different waste material and conditions during the fire.