Research: searched Google for "working in landfill, firsthand experience of a dump, maps of new york city dumps, new york landfill regulations", posted my query on Yahoo! Answers
What I Need: My story, as I stated above, is to take place in part in a landfill modern day New York. My character is a young woman about 20 years old who is a close friend of the dump's owner, but in order to pay back what she feels she owes to him, she works in the dump 5 days a week.
The most useful source I could get my hands on would be a firsthand account of landfill work, including the hierarchy of a waste management facility and the work expected of a laborer. It would also be very helpful if this information could be relative to New York, or at least a similar American city. What guidelines define the placement of city landfills? How close are they allowed to be to the waterfront? What is day to day life like? Is there more traffic during certain days of the week?
