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A landfill in Poland

Uncontrolled garbage dump.

A landfill is a place where waste is kept. Waste is usually buried in landfills, but it may first be sorted to remove any recyclable materials.

Landfills have a bad smell and look bad, therefore are usually located far away from where people live.

Once the waste is crushed into very small pieces, it is buried, but without oxygen, a dangerous gas called methane is created. This process is called anaerobic digestion. In some countries, the methane from landfills is used to generate energy.