Scope of the Solid Waste Problems

Although solid waste collection and disposal services are inherently a local i.e., community or county-responsibility, the urban, suburban, and rural sectors are so closely bunched together in the densely settled parts of the country that solid waste management can no longer be effectively achieved solely by the independent action of any single sector. This situation is further aggravated by the general reluctance of local governments to assume the responsibility either for providing collection and disposal services or really high standards, or for providing collection and disposal services technologically equipped to cope with today's solid waste load—in terms of content as well as load. There is also the absence in most areas of any coordinated, jurisdiction which can approach solid waste management for an area of community-wide or regional scale. Area-wide refuse disposal service is being provided in only a few metropolitan areas by special districts, by counties, or by cooperative agreements between cities and other local political jurisdictions.