US may be drastically underestimating landfill emissions – study

Methane emissions from American landfills could be much higher than thought because of garbage underestimates by the EPA, reports ClimateCentral

Landfills may be emitting more methane than previously reported because the Environmental Protection Agency may be drastically underestimating how much garbage is being deposited in landfills across the US, according to a new Yale University study.

Banana peels, coffee grounds, plastic bottles and other detritus tossed in the garbage usually ends up in a landfill and emits methane as it decomposes.