and reduction lower the amount of garbage that needs to be disposed of
making them environmentally favorable. Simple waste-reduction techniques
such as copying on both sides of the paper or shopping with reusable bags
are examples of waste-reduction practices that also save natural resources. Similarly
for products produced entirely of raw materials
using fewer raw materials is predicted to reduce the environmental impact of package manufacturing
transit
treatment
and disposal. Waste reduction
reuse
recycling
and composting are all intended to reduce the amount of material that must be burnt and eventually landfilled
as well as to alter the characteristics of the wastes that must be incinerated and landfilled. The purpose is to reduce the amount of toxic waste released into the environment as a result of landfill or incinerator emissions. In comparing the two solutions considered
incineration has a greater potential for recovery because trash can be converted into energy. It is feasible to produce energy using the landfill option
but it is very hard to recover any useable material from land without first going through a separation recovery step. The direct ecological costs are linked to each technology’s specific externalities. Both landfilling and incineration pollute the environment
but in different ways and to varying degrees. Environmental externalities must be assessed in every case since they can vary in strength from one dump to the next.
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