Nitrification in multistage horizontal flow treatment wetlands for landfill leachate treatment.

One of the key challenges in landfill leachate treatment is removing organic matter (OM) and ammonium nitrogen (NH-N) at a low cost. To evaluate the feasibility of treatment wetlands for diluted (3:10) landfill leachate treatment with OM and NH-N oxidation, a lab-scale shallow subsurface horizontal flow system (HF wetland) comprised of two units operated in series was assessed as post-treatment of partial ammonia stripping system. A HF wetland planted with Heliconia psittacorum (HP) and an unplanted HF wetland (control) were supplemented with micronutrients and monitored under the influence of hydraulic retention time (HRT), pH, and the plant presence on performance.