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What Does a Sanitation Worker Do?
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  • Written By: Felicia Dye
  • Edited By: Heather Bailey
  • Copyright Protected:
    2003-2012
    Conjecture Corporation
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Sanitation work is a term commonly used to describe tasks that involve disposing of or recycling waste in a manner that is hygienic and that aims to prevent disease. There are numerous subcategories and jobs that are considered part of the sanitation industry. For example, a sanitation worker may be employed by a city to collect trash or he may be employed by a private company to treat wastewater.

Trash collectors are employed in numerous cities around the world. This type of sanitation worker is generally responsible for helping households and businesses dispose of garbage. He does this by going from place to place and taking away unwanted goods. Generally, he identifies what is unwanted because such items will be left in a particular place, in particular receptacles, on particular days. A trash collector can be the sanitation worker who physically loads garbage into the garbage vehicle or the person who drives such a vehicle.

In some instances, garbage is not collected from people’s homes or businesses. In rural areas, it is common for people to haul their trash to a collection site. An individual who works at such a site is a sanitation worker.

His duties generally include ensuring that people adhere to the rules and regulations of the site. For example, he may be responsible for preventing the disposal of hazardous waste. He may also be responsible for ensuring that people place certain types of garbage in certain collection bins.

Once trash is collected, it is commonly sent to a landfill. This is a place where massive amounts of garbage are usually placed in the ground. A worker at this facility is also a sanitation worker. Since a landfill is a complex facility, there are numerous jobs and duties.

For example, landfills or laws may prohibit the dumping of certain items. These items are often separated from the acceptable garbage. A sanitation worker must then take the prohibited items to an area where they can be properly dealt with. Another sanitation worker at the same landfill may be responsible for using machines that compact, bulldoze, or recycle the garbage that is dumped.

Some waste is not collected by people. Instead, it flows to collection receptacles by way of pipes. This type of waste is often sanitized so that the water contained in it can be reused. The people involved in this process are sanitation workers. A sanitation worker in this area of the industry may be responsible for pumping out septic systems that are blocked or full. He may also be responsible for operating or overseeing the machines at a wastewater facility.

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