Table 1. Guide to the Approximate Size of Equipment Needed 
for Communities in Various Population Ranges 
Population Served 
Size of Equipment 
Up to 10,000 
One crawler tractor with bucket or 
shovel capacity of about 1 cu. yd.* 
10,000 - 30,000 
One crawler tractor with bucket or 
shovel capacity of about 2 cu. yds.* 
30,000 - 50,000 
One crawler tractor with bucket or 
shovel capacity of about 3 cu. yds.* 
* Reference to buckets or shovels of varying capacities is not meant to imply that bull' 
dozer blades may not be used. Many sanitary landfills are being operated in a very 
satisfactory manner with crawler tractors equipped with bulldozer blades. 
require the full-time use of equipment and operator at 
the landfill site, both could be used on other com- 
munity projects such as truck loading, snow re- 
moval, and street maintenance. The equipment 
operator for a small town might also be tbe driver 
of the refuse collection vehicle. If the equipment or 
the operator is sometimes used for other purposes, 
there should be a clear understanding that the 
sanitary landfill work comes first. Otherwise, the 
landfill may deteriorate into an open dump that will 
be a nuisance and a public health hazard. 
On larger operations, it is desirable to employ a 
supervisor to direct all the activities of the project. 
He will supervise the unloading of trucks, the ex- 
cavation of soil, the spreading, compacting, and 
covering of refuse, and keep the records. He should 
also be able to operate the tractor in the absence 
of the regular operator. 
For efficient operation of any sanitary landfill, 
a capable equipment operator is essential. If tbe 
community employs a city engineer, he may give 
general supervision to the project. If the commu- 
nity, county, or other agency responsible for the 
operation of the landfill has no engineer, assist- 
ance is usually available from the State or local 
health department. 
Operation 
On Level Ground and Rolling Terrain. In rela- 
tively level areas a ramp may be constructed 
by making a shallow excavation and using the ex- 
cavated earth to form that part of the ramp that is 
above the original ground level. On rolling terrain 
the operation may be started using a natural 
slope. The width and length of the slope will de- 
pend in part on the nature of the terrain, the volume 
of refuse delivered daily to the site, and the num- 
ber of trucks likely to be present for unloading at 
the same time. The minimum width of the slope 
should be approximately twice the width of the 
tractor, which will allow the tractor to move 
from side to side and compact all of the refuse. 
The slope of the ramp should not be greater 
than 30°. 
The refuse should be deposited at the base or 
at the top of the ramp by the collection vehicles, 
spread in 12-inch layers on the ramp by the tractor, 
and compacted. This should be done many times 
each day to obtain best compaction, rather than 
attempting to spread and compact a large accumula- 
tion, many feet in depth, at one time. At the end of 
the day’s operation, the compacted refuse on the 
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