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The City of Ann Arbor operated a landfill at Platt and Ellsworth roads through the early 1990s.

The facility is now closed, but as of 2015 the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality still requires monitoring of environmental contamination at and near the site.

According to the City of Ann Arbor, for many years the landfill has had a plume of 1,4 Dioxane and Vinyl Chloride contamination offsite primarily in Southeast Area Park, northeast of the landfill.  A slurry wall was constructed along approximately 80% of the boundary of the landfill to eliminate groundwater passing through the landfill and three purge wells were used to attempt to capture the offsite contamination.  

 

Ann Arbor Landfill: Timeline

  • 2015-06-10 The Ann Arbor Landfill appears on the June 1, 2015 agenda of the Ann Arbor City Council for the Council's approval of Amendment No. 3 to the Professional Services Agreement with Tetra Tech, Inc. for Environmental Consulting in the amount of $441,503 and to appropriate funds  in the amount of $53,510. The mid-year appropriation of funds is required under the City Charter to have support of at least eight members of the 11-member Council. The amended contract amount totals $1,065,724.
  • 2008 Gas rights and system operation transferred from DTE to Landfill Energy Systems
  • April 1998 Landfill Gas used to power two 800 kW generators which produce enough electricity for 1,000 households.
  • October 1997 Electric generation system construction begins by Michigan CoGeneration Systems. Total cost was about $1.2 million.
  • 1997 Landfill Gas-to-Energy Mural completed at the Materials Recovery Facility (MRF), illustrations by David Zinn.
  • September 1996 Landfill gas flare lit
    Over 2 miles of piping was buried in landfill to transport gas to blower/flare station.
    Cost = approx. $1,000,000
    38 wells in Phase I, surface collection system built into cap on Phase II
  • 1996 Landfill Gas Collection System is constructed by DTE Biomass Energy:
  • 1994 Landfill gas project planning begins
  • 1984-1992 Phase II — "modern" landfill — is in operation.
  • 1959-1984: Phase I is under City operation.
  • 1930s Landfill starts as gravel pit.
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