Air

Locals- Air- CH₄ and CO₂- landfill gas- solid waste- La Doña Juana Landfill

The La Doña Juana Landfill is emitting high levels of CH₄, making a significant contribution to global warming.

Waste within landfills gradually decomposes as it accumulates. In the absence of proper management, the physical and chemical conditions within landfills promote anaerobic decomposition, leading to CH₄ emissions. The release of methane into the air accelerates the process of climate change. CH₄ released during the decomposition of solid waste sector currently accounts for over 20 percent of Colombia's total CH₄ emissions.

The environmental risks of landfills extend beyond CH₄ emissions. As waste decomposes, landfills also emit CO₂, which is another greenhouse gas contributing significantly to climate change as CH₄.

Policies frequently locate such pollution sources in impoverished communities such as Usme and Ciudad Bolívar, where locals are unfortunate enough to live near the La Doña Juana Landfill.

Based on the degradation characteristics of municipal solid waste at the Donia Juana landfill in 2023, a spatio-temporal distribution model for methane generation during the period 2024–2075 has been developed.(Greenpeace Colombia. Agosto,2024)

Air-CH₄

CH₄ is a greenhouse gas whose global warming potential is 80 times than that of CO₂ over the first 20 years after release. CH₄ itself does not typically pose a direct health hazard, but at high concentrations it may limit O₂ availability. Furthermore, as a precursor, CH₄ is a reactive gas that promotes the formation of tropospheric ozone, which is a hazardous atmospheric pollutant with potentially lethal effects on human health and public wellbeing.

Bibliography:

Clean Air Task Force. (n.d.). Colombian Waste Sector Methane Analysis. [online] Available at: https://www.catf.us/resource/colombian-waste-sector-methane-analysis/.

Greenpeace Colombia. (2025). Greenpeace Colombia. [online] Available at: https://www.greenpeace.org/colombia/noticia/campanas/contaminacion/relleno-sanitario-dona-juana-una-bomba-de-tiempo-para-las-comunidades-y-el-ambiente/ [Accessed 2 Dec. 2025].

De, E., Generación, L., Captura, Y., Emisiones, D., Metano, D., Relleno, S., De Doña, J. and Bogotá, C. (n.d.). Available at: https://www.greenpeace.org/static/planet4-colombia-stateless/2024/09/aa3dab3b-reportemetano-colombia.pdf.