Designing and constructing an embankment, or any other type of construction, on landfill, is particularly complex because of the poor loadbearing capacity of landfill, the likelihood that it will be incoherent and variable in its mechanical behaviour, and because these factors are difficult to quantify at the design stage.
Since traditional probing and strengthening techniques such as piled foundations (which would risk contaminating the ground) cannot be used on landfill, it is crucially important to minimise the loads imposed by the new embankment. This can be achieved in technically and economically advantageous ways by using expanded clay, and following the methods described in the preceding paragraphs.
Advantages