leachate

American  

[lee-cheyt] / ˈli tʃeɪt /

noun

1. a solution resulting from leaching, as of soluble constituents from soil, landfill, etc., by downward percolating groundwater.

   Leachates in the town's water supply have been traced to a chemical-waste dump.

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leachate British  

/ ˈliːtʃeɪt /

noun

1. water that carries salts dissolved out of materials through which it has percolated, esp polluted water from a refuse tip

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Etymology

Origin of leachate

First recorded in 1930–35; leach ¹ + -ate ²

Example Sentences

“We keep hearing about liners and leachate, but we’re not hearing about wind,” said Erick Fefferman.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 12, 2025

These are intended to simulate how solid waste could release chemicals inside the landfill as it’s exposed to leachate — liquid waste from rainfall or decomposing garbage.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 12, 2025

The analysis revealed that while landfills do a good job of retaining microplastics, their leachate contains high levels of PFAS.

From Science Daily • Nov. 19, 2024

Souyoultzis says this is not the same as compost tea and should be discarded — often anaerobic, it’s not appropriate to use leachate near growing plants.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 8, 2023

They then poured different concentrations of the remaining leachate into seawater cultures and incubated them on deck for four days.

From Science Daily • Nov. 30, 2023