ABSTRACT
Moisture content is probably the single most important variable affecting the rate of biodegrada-tion of municipal solid waste (MSW) in a sanitary landfill. 1 , 2 The water in a landfill has many critical functions. It is a reactant in the first step of waste decomposition (hydrolysis of lignocellulosic materials), and a transport medium by which the nutrients reach the bacteria and the enzymes reach the substrate. Water also helps in modifying the conformational structure of enzymes, in dissolving metabolites, in exposing more of the substrate surface area to microbial attack, and in controlling cell turgidity. 2 , 3 Prediction of landfill biodegradation rates, therefore, requires estimates of the moisture content and its distribution in the waste layer.
