Resource Center
Our Landfill Modernization Roadmap
Byline: BTB Editor
March 18, 2026 / Time to read: 5 minAt Republic Services, we’re changing the trajectory of trash with novel solutions for detecting and capturing emissions. Since 2017, we’ve invested more than $1 billion in technologies to control and capture landfill emissions, achieving a 20% reduction in 2024 and progressing steadily toward our goal of a 35% reduction by 2030.
Our Comprehensive Approach
Our landfill modernization roadmap includes the following:
- Deploying alternative landfill cover systems and optimizing cover timing to reduce fugitive emissions
- Improving emissions modeling accuracy through the Solid Waste Industry for Climate Solutions (SWICS) system
- Developing a large portfolio of Landfill-Gas-to-Energy (LFGTE) projects
- Using GPS technology for more efficient landfill construction and expansion
- Implementing advanced emissions monitoring and measurement technology
- Employing drones to detect, visualize and respond to fugitive emissions
But that’s not all; we’ve set an ambitious target to deploy more than 100 landfill-gas-to-renewable-natural-gas (RNG) projects by 2030. To help us get there, we’re strategically investing in technologies that continue to drive significant emissions reductions, including innovations in landfill gas collection, cover systems and modeling.
Rethinking Landfill Space
We need landfills to safely and efficiently manage our waste. But the uses of landfill space extend far beyond trash.
At many of our landfills — which span tens of thousands of acres of open space — we’re protecting wetlands, preserves and habitats. We’re even making land available for solar energy fields, farming and community spaces like sports fields and public trails.
To learn more about modern landfills, check out
