Solid Waste Management: Planning Issues and Opportunities

by American Planning Association

The United States already has the highest per capita waste generation in the world: 860 pounds a year. We cannot allow that number to grow until we run out of landfill space. Instead, we must move toward ideas like waste reduction, incineration, and recycling to keep the country from being buried under a mound of trash. Planners are seeing their role in solid waste management increase. This report provides planners with knowledge about the solid waste problem and policy issues that have been proposed to deal with the problem. The authors explain the history of waste disposal and its traditional remedies. They then talk about innovative schemes that various municipalities have used to manage waste. An overview of legislation is followed by case studies that illustrate that Americans are willing to give up their ingrained habits for the promise of a better environment. Full of information, this is a comprehensive manual for planners or commissioners involved in policy issues.

71 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1990