From “American Dream” to “America Green”

From using vultures and “piggeries,” Americans had tried it all. All along the way, we invented new ways of producing more waste. The American dream inspired many to do everything except “reduce, reuse and recycle.” When did we begin to “rethink,” and see a bit of light at the end of the “garbage mountain” tunnel? Let’s continue to learn from the Association of Science Technology Center.

In 1959, the American Society of Civil Engineers published a standard guide to sanitary landfilling. To guard against rodents and odors, it suggested compacting the refuse and covering it with a layer of soil each day. In 1965 the Solid Waste Disposal Act, the first federal solid waste management law, was enacted. In the next three decades, the following landmark steps were taken by an increasingly environmentally conscious society.

In the 70’s alone:

• The federal Resource Recovery Act amended the Solid Waste Disposal Act, and required the federal government to issue waste disposal guidelines.
• The federal Clean Air Act was enacted. New regulations led to incinerator shut downs.
• The first Earth Day took place. Millions of people rallied nationwide on April 22, 1970.
• The United States Environmental Protection Agency was created.
• The federal Clean Water Act was enacted to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and
  biological integrity of the nation's waters.
• The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act created the first significant role for federal
  government in waste management. It emphasized recycling and conservation of energy.
• The Toxic Substances Control Act was passed. Before this went into effect, any individual or
  business could legally dump any kind and amount of hazardous chemicals in landfills.
• The Environmental Protection Agency issued landfill criteria that prohibited open dumping.

The 80’s saw similar improvements, and the state of Ohio took action. In 1988, Ohio’s legislature passed House Bill 592, an ambitious piece of legislation that significantly strengthened Ohio’s 20-year- old solid waste law and that set in motion a planning process at both the local and state government levels. The overriding goals of this planning process were to ensure that there was adequate and environmentally sound management capacity for Ohio’s solid waste and to increase the efforts of Ohio’s communities, businesses and industries to reduce and recycle solid wastes. That’s what mandates what we do here in the Miami County Solid Waste District. In future blogs, we’ll explain not only what we do, but what we all can do, to help keep our community clean.