City landfill (Nubarasheni Aghbanots) (Yerevan)

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The Nubarashen landfill site has been handling the solid waste of Yerevan City ever since its establishment on the outskirts of the city in 1960. The landfill site is divided into three sections, A, B and C, each covering an area of 20 ha. Site A started service in 1960 and became full in 1985; Site B has been in service from
1986 until the present day.


Nubarashen landfill site receives almost all the solid waste of Yerevan City, which has a population of approximately 1,280,000. Almost all the waste going to Nubarashen is composed of domestic waste discharged by citizens, whereas industrial waste accounts for only a small proportion. The amount of waste carried into Nubarashen landfill site is roughly estimated as 420-450 tons/day and, even taking the most conservative estimate, 149,100 tons/year. However, since incoming waste is only managed according to the number of trucks entering the landfill site, there are no accurate data concerning the quality and quantity of the waste.

Due to a lack of funds, site operation and heavy machinery maintenance cannot be carried out according to the prescribed manuals (landfill standards), and many machines are in a state of disrepair following breakdowns. Landfill gas (LFG) from the site is released into the atmosphere unchecked and current conditions on the site are detrimental to the local environment. This is because LFG is a source of odor when emitted in low concentrations and is a potential cause of explosion or ignition when emitted in high concentrations.