According to the manual, the bulldozer "clears rubbles and demolishes buildings. It can scavenge material from debris".

How exactly do you get the bulldozer to do all these things ? The interface menu when I select a bulldozer does not display any option related to clearing an area.

Any tips on how to best use (or avoid) the bulldozer ?

In M.A.X. 1, the bulldozer can only clear debris (scavenging materials in the process). Simply move onto the debris and use the menu, or the shortcut key which I don't remember (maybe 'r'?).

r = Remove