The solid waste problem

Municipal solid waste (msw) includes predominantly household waste (domestic waste) with sometimes the addition of commercial wastes collected in a given area; they are in either solid or semisolid state. The term residual waste relates to waste left from household sources containing materials that have not been separated out or sent for reprocessing. In 1996 the United Nations Environmental Programme defined integrated waste management (iwm) as “a framework of reference for designing and implementing new waste management systems and for analysing and optimising existing systems” (Seadon, 2006). At the local level the problem by solid waste gets progressively more difficult in our communities every day. It is necessary to promote the constitution of microbusiness or productive associations with approaches to managerial management and alternative technologies, social participation and environmental education for the appropriate handling of the waste (Pan American Health Organization, 2005). Environmental initiatives for the firms in most cases meant cost saving and improvements in product and in process quality.