9.    LANDFILL CLOSURE AND POST-CLOSURE OBLIGATIONS

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The following table presents GFL’s landfill closure and post-closure obligations for the periods indicated:

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The present value of GFL’s future landfill closure and post-closure obligations has been estimated by management based on GFL’s cost, in today’s dollars, to settle closure and post-closure obligations at its landfills, projected timing of these expenditures and the application of discount and inflation rates. GFL used a risk-free discount rate of 3.02% in Canada and 4.03% in the United States as at December 31, 2023 (3.28% in Canada and 3.97% in the United States as at December 31, 2022) and an inflation rate of 2.60% in Canada and 2.82% in the United States (2.38% in Canada and 2.63% in the United States as at December 31, 2022) to calculate the present value of the landfill closure and post-closure obligations. Obligations acquired through business combinations are initially valued at fair value using a credit-adjusted, risk-free discount rate. Reducing the discount rate to the risk-free rate resulted in a one-time increase to the liability of $4.4 million included in the provisions line item in the table above for the year ended December 31, 2023 ($7.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2022).

The landfill closure and post-closure obligations mature as follows:

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Funded landfill post-closure assets

GFL is required to deposit funds into trusts to settle post-closure obligations for landfills in certain jurisdictions. As at December 31, 2023, included in other long-term assets are funded landfill post-closure obligations, representing the fair value of legally restricted assets, totaling $28.3 million ($26.1 million as at December 31, 2022).