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Landfills are places where all our trash goes when we no longer need it. Each
person in the United States makes an average 4.5 pounds of garbage per year. And
every year the United States as a whole produces 4,036,300,000 metric tons of solid
waste each year. All of this waste does not just disappear, 80 percent ends up in
landfills. In the following report I am going to tell you about the different types of
landfills there are, the problems that have come up with the building of landfills, and
what can be done and is being done to reduce the amount of waste going into landfills.

First of all, "What are the different types of landfills?" Well, there are two
different types of landfills; the first type is the old type of landfill which are often called
open dumps where trash and other waste were thrown, often times in a ditch or just
placed in a pile. These open dumps are a poor method of waste disposal because they
cause numerous environmental problems. For example, they can ruin an area's
appearance and provide a home and breeding ground for animals that spread disease. In
addition, rain water drains through refuse and can carry harmful substances to nearby
streams and to water that is used for drinking. Unregulated dumps where waste is burned
in the open can cause smoke and foul-smelling air. Burning in open dumps has been
prohibited in the United States. The other type of landfill is most often called a sanitary
landfill. Properly operated sanitary landfills cause little damage to the environment. The
waste is firmly packed by heavy tractors and other machinery, and covered with earth each
day. The cover of earth prevents insects and other animals from getting into the refuse.
In time, sanitary landfill sites become filled up.

Many communities then cover the site with earth a final time and use the...