This paper introduces a new landfill design and system for landfill gas containment and air ingress prevention. The new system offers more control over the processes of anaerobic digestion and biogas extraction than conventional landfills. As the new system reduces the air ingress the landfill gas purification process becomes cheaper. The new system can be implemented on existing landfills, as it is sufficient to modify only the top cover of the landfill, which is the surface with a significant air influx. As the new system makes the landfill gas treatment cheaper and more efficient, it would be possible for many landfills to be converted to landfills where the landfill gas utilization would be profitable, increasing in this way the use of renewable energy sources and reducing the greenhouse gas emission. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.