despite the fact that the proper design of processing plants as well as final disposal facilities should include a through understanding of the properties of refuse and its components,this requirement has,up until recently,been ignored. Perhaps this can be explained by the absence of reliable information readily available in the literature. This problem is particularly more pronounced in economically developing countries. Mechanical properties are espcially important in the design of sanitary landfills and ancillary systems, This section presents the results of analyse carried out using raw MSW,fraction of MSW, as well as landfilled MSW generated in industrialised countries in western europe. Due to the sharp differences in the composition and characteristics between these wastes and those from economically developing countries, it is recommend that the data presented bin these sections be used simply as references and modified to suit the cinditions of the particular location