solid-waste management

Introduction
Historical background
- Early waste disposal
- Developments in waste management
Solid-waste characteristics
- Composition and properties
- Generation and storage
Solid-waste collection
- Collecting and transporting
- Transfer stations
Solid-waste treatment and disposal
- Incineration
  - Furnace operation
  - Energy recovery
- Composting
  - Sorting and shredding
  - Digesting and processing
- Sanitary landfill
  - Constructing the landfill
  - Controlling by-products
  - Importance in waste management
- Recycling
  - Separation
  - Reuse

References & Edit History Related Topics

Images & Videos

Piles of discarded electronic waste, including old televisions and computer monitors, scattered across a dry, grassy field with rusted metal and debris.

Explore how bacteria and other microorganisms decompose solid-waste efficiently in sanitary landfills

Side-by-side diagrams compare the trench and area methods of constructing a sanitary landfill, showing waste collection trucks and bulldozers layering compacted solid waste with daily and final earth covers on original ground, with labeled parts but without liners or leachate systems.

Learn how local recycling waste-management programs lessen landfills' solid-waste burdens

Is garbage the next big resource for energy?

Related Questions

How are steel cans removed from mixed recyclables at a materials recovery facility?
How can completed sanitary landfills be reused as parks or playgrounds?
How can compost made from municipal waste be used?
How can improperly disposed municipal solid waste pollute the environment?
How can landfill fires worsen air pollution in Indian cities?
How can methane collected from a landfill be used as fuel?
How can open dumps become breeding grounds for disease-carrying animals and insects?
How can poorly managed landfills contribute to typhoid and cholera in India?
How did solid-waste management practices change after the 19th century?
How do compaction trucks make refuse collection more efficient?
How do curbside collection, drop-off centres, and buy-back centres differ for recycling?
How do dumpsters and on-site compactors help large buildings manage waste?
How do garbage and rubbish differ in solid-waste management?
How do liners in sanitary landfills protect groundwater?
How do modern waste incinerators control air pollution?
How do sanitary landfills collect and treat leachate?
How do sanitary landfills differ from open dumps?
How do secure landfills provide extra protection for hazardous waste?
How does composting reduce the volume of organic waste?
How does leachate form in a waste-disposal site?
How does recycling reduce the need for raw materials from forests, mines, and fossil fuels?
How does soil permeability affect the risk of groundwater pollution from waste sites?
How is municipal solid waste managed through segregation, collection, processing, and disposal in India?
What economic conditions can make recycling more attractive than disposal?
Which hazardous materials can be found in discarded electronic devices?
Which properties make a waste hazardous?
Why are informal waste collectors important to waste management in India?
Why are recyclables recovered from mixed garbage often contaminated?
Why are tight-fitting household waste containers used for refuse storage?
Why can leachate threaten groundwater, streams, and lakes?
Why do communities ask residents to separate recyclable materials from garbage?
Why do many waste-management systems emphasize waste reduction and recycling before disposal?
Why do sand and gravel allow contaminants to move more easily than clay?
Why do sanitary landfills remain necessary even when communities recycle?
Why does refuse collection cost more per person in rural areas?
Why does solid-waste collection make up a large share of waste-management costs?
Why is biodegradability important when choosing how to process waste in India?
Why is electronic waste a growing concern in developed countries?
Why is household garbage usually collected at least once a week?
Why is planning garbage-collection routes difficult in large cities?
Why is waste compacted and covered with soil each day in a sanitary landfill?
Why must a community study its waste before building a treatment or disposal facility?
Why must glass and metal be separated from organic waste before composting?
Why were sanitary landfills developed in the mid-20th century?

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External Websites

Engineering LibreTexts - Solid Waste Management
LiveAbout.com - An Introduction to Solid Waste Management
National Center for Biotechnology Information - Pubmed Central - Environmental Sustainability Impacts of Solid Waste Management Practices in the Global South
University of Massachusetts Amherst - Center for Agriculture, Food, and the Environment - Waste Management and Composting
University of West Florida Pressbooks - Introduction to Environmental Sciences and Sustainability - Waste Management Strategies

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garbage management - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11)

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Written by

Jerry A. Nathanson

Professor of Engineering, Union County College, Cranford, New Jersey. Author of Basic Environmental Technology: Water Supply, Waste Disposal, and Pollution Control.

Jerry A. Nathanson

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Britannica Editors

Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....

Britannica Editors

Last updated

Sep. 26, 2026 •History

solid-waste management, the collecting, treating, and disposing of solid material that is discarded because it has served its purpose or is no longer useful. Improper disposal of municipal solid waste can create unsanitary conditions, and these conditions in turn can lead to pollution of the environment and to outbreaks of vector-borne disease—that is, diseases spread by rodents and insects. The tasks of solid-waste management present complex technical challenges. They also pose a wide variety of...

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