The Trimble SiteFID is a portable landfill gas monitor that adds efficiency to environmental services. It includes a flame ionization detector, ensuring laboratory quality gas detection that was once only possible with expensive and complicated chromatography equipment, while Bluetooth technology and GPS make communications and positioning data readily available in the field and in distant offices. Landfill gas monitoring is often complex and expensive. It typically involves placing equipment at various depths under the soil, on the surface, and in buildings, utility structures, and other spaces where methane and other dangerous gases can build up. The gas detector provides accurate monitoring in real time, reduces the costs associated with errors and repeat measurements, and helps ensure regulatory compliance.
One reason that the Trimble SiteFID gas monitor is so important for landfill operations is that it is built for accurate reporting. The device quickly displays the gas levels at a particular location, and does so as it is carried along. It does not only log each data sample into its memory. Integrated GPS allows positioning information to be applied to each measurement, so all data can be monitored in relation to the spot it was collected from, and even viewed on a map.
The efficiency demonstrated by the system comes from the fact that the risks of data entry mistakes are eliminated. Ground coverage over time is also maximized; this workflow advantage, combined with reliable data collection, drives the second reason to consider the gas detector – reduced costs of operation. Expenses are reduced because measurements do not have to be repeated, are conducted faster than with conventional systems, and are logged automatically so there is no need for time-consuming paperwork. The monitor can also be used to gauge the effectiveness of actions taken to lower abnormally high gas levels, helping to promptly identify costly measures that do not mitigate potentially serious problems.
A third reason that the Trimble SiteFID is worth considering is that it can help meet reporting needs for the purpose of regulatory compliance. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has put forth strict rules for monitoring soil contaminants, including gases like methane that build up around landfills. These gases can travel to nearby communities, and increase the risk of explosions away from the work site, even near homes. Landfill gas levels are constantly addressed by the EPA which conducts its own monitoring, particularly in high-risk places labeled as Superfund sites. The gas monitor, therefore, can be used to maintain compliance and to reliably track efforts to meet the agency’s guidelines.
The Trimble SiteFID's monitoring capabilities are combined with highly accurate positioning and communication. These features result in low cost tracking and reporting that help organizations manage already strained budgets. Adding compliance with regulatory requirements to the mix, this new gas monitoring solution improves the overall efficiency, safety, and quality of landfill operations.
